| Kiev says cannot withdraw heavy weapons as attacks persist Posted: 23 Feb 2015 01:05 PM PST  By Pavel Polityuk and Anton Zverev KIEV/DONETSK, Ukraine (Reuters) - Kiev accused pro-Russian rebels of opening fire with rockets and artillery at villages in southeastern Ukraine on Monday, all but burying a week-old European-brokered ceasefire deal. The Ukrainian military said it could not pull weapons from the front as required under the tenuous truce, as long as its troops were still under attack. Ukraine's currency, nearly in freefall this month, fell a further 10 percent on Monday on fears that the truce could collapse. The reported shooting came closer to killing off the truce, intended to end fighting that has killed more than 5,600 people, which rebels ignored last week to capture the strategic town of Debaltseve in a punishing defeat for Kiev.
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| Two men sentenced to 25 years in plot to attack Americans in Afghanistan Posted: 23 Feb 2015 04:29 PM PST Two men convicted of seeking to join al Qaeda and training to carry out attacks on Americans in Afghanistan were sentenced on Monday to 25 years in federal prison, the U.S. Justice Department said. U.S. District Judge Virginia Phillips sentenced Sohiel Omar Kabir, 37, and Ralph Deleon, 26, who prosecutors said trained at firearms and paintball facilities in Southern California to prepare for their mission. Deleon was also convicted of conspiracy to commit murder, kidnapping or maiming overseas. Prosecutors said trial evidence showed that Kabir introduced Deleon and another defendant, Miguel Alejandro Santana Vidriales, to militant Islamist theology in 2010 and, after traveling to Afghanistan in 2012, encouraged them to follow him there to join al Qaeda. |
| British spies in U.S. terror trial must be faceless in sketches: judge Posted: 23 Feb 2015 03:46 PM PST By Nate Raymond NEW YORK (Reuters) - Five British MI-5 officers expected to testify anonymously in wigs and makeup in the U.S. trial of an accused al Qaeda operative may be portrayed in courtroom sketches with only "blank faces" and "generic hair," a federal judge said on Monday. U.S. District Judge Raymond Dearie in Brooklyn, New York, ordered media sketch artists at the trial of Pakistani-born Abid Naseer to refrain from detailed portrayals of the officers with Britain's domestic counterintelligence agency, calling them "committed, lifelong operatives." "The situation is grave," Dearie said in a court hearing. Dearie had previously at prosecutors' urging approved a variety of steps aimed at protecting the officers' identities, including identifying them only through numbers and the use of wigs and "light" make-up. |
| U.S. Senate Democrats invite Netanyahu to meeting during visit Posted: 23 Feb 2015 04:43 PM PST  By Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two senior U.S. Senate Democrats invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday to a closed-door meeting with Democratic senators during his upcoming visit to Washington, warning that making U.S.-Israeli relations a partisan political issue could have "lasting repercussions." Senators Richard Durbin and Dianne Feinstein extended the invitation "to maintain Israel's dialogue with both political parties in Congress," according to a letter to the Israeli leader seen by Reuters. Netanyahu has faced criticism at home and abroad for his plans to address Congress on Iran's nuclear program on March 3, just two weeks before Israeli elections and at a sensitive point in international negotiations with Tehran.
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| U.S. jury orders Palestinian groups to pay attack victims $218.5 million Posted: 23 Feb 2015 04:41 PM PST By Joseph Ax NEW YORK (Reuters) - A U.S. jury on Monday found the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian Authority liable for supporting terrorist attacks in Israel more than a decade ago that killed dozens of people. Jurors in Manhattan federal court awarded $218.5 million in damages to 10 American families who brought the case, a sum that is automatically tripled to $655.5 million under a 1992 U.S. anti-terrorism law, lawyers for the families said. Both defendants said they would appeal. Last September, a federal jury in Brooklyn found Arab Bank Plc liable for providing material support to Hamas. |
| Mexico complains about remarks attributed to pope over drug image Posted: 23 Feb 2015 05:04 PM PST  Mexico said on Monday it would send a letter to the Vatican to complain about remarks attributed to Pope Francis about the risk of Argentina suffering a criminal "Mexicanization" due to the spread of drug gangs there. Mexico's Foreign Minister Jose Antonio Meade said his government had expressed concern that the country was being "stigmatized" as a land of drug traffickers in an email attributed to Francis published in Argentina over the weekend. "We had a meeting with the (papal) nuncio and we will indeed send a note, and what worries us is that the drug trafficking challenge is a shared challenge. It's a challenge that Mexico is undertaking massive efforts on," Meade said in Mexico City.
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| Top Asian News at 1:00 a.m. GMT Posted: 23 Feb 2015 05:02 PM PST DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — The death toll from a weekend ferry disaster in central Bangladesh rose to 70 on Monday, as divers finished their search after the vessel was lifted to the surface and towed to shore. A local government administrator, Rasheda Ferdousi, said the area of the river around the accident site was still being monitored because some passengers were still missing. He did not give an exact number. |
| Mysterious tunnel found near Canada sports venue Posted: 23 Feb 2015 04:52 PM PST  A sophisticated tunnel has been discovered near a major sporting venue and a university in Toronto, reports said Monday, with Canada on edge over the threat of possible extremist attacks. A municipal worker was walking through woods near York University and the Rexall Center last month when he spotted a piece of corrugated metal on the ground, lifted it up and found a passageway, the public broadcaster CBC said. Toronto is hosting the Pan American Games in July and the Rexall Center is one of the venues.
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| Britain rejects stricter ban on gender-based abortion Posted: 23 Feb 2015 04:45 PM PST  British lawmakers rejected a bid to explicitly outlaw abortion based on the gender of the foetus on Monday. Health minister Jane Ellison had argued against the bid, saying that abortion on the grounds of whether the foetus is male or female was "already illegal". "It is necessary because there is no explicit statement about gender selective abortion in UK law," said lawmaker Fiona Bruce as she proposed the amendment. Yet those opposed had argued that an explicit ban would be unenforceable and have unintended consequences such as complicating women's access to abortion.
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| 2 Californians get 25 years in federal prison for terror try Posted: 23 Feb 2015 04:35 PM PST RIVERSIDE, California (AP) — Two California men have been sentenced to 25 years in prison for conspiring to support terrorists and kill Americans overseas. |
| UN report urges drones for peace missions Posted: 23 Feb 2015 04:34 PM PST  A UN report is calling for drones to be deployed in most peacekeeping missions as part of a major technological leap needed to help the United Nations confront world crises, the lead expert of the study said Monday. The UN mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the UN's largest peace force, has been using surveillance drones to monitor rebel groups in the east. "This is essential technology for missions on the ground. Most missions should have it," said Jane Hotte Lule, head of the five-member panel that prepared the report on technology and innovation in UN peacekeeping.
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| Dominican Republic surgery clinic closed after 2 deaths Posted: 23 Feb 2015 04:29 PM PST SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) — Authorities in the Dominican Republic have closed a plastic surgery clinic in the city of Santiago after two deaths. |
| Venezuelan leader seeks to rally poor with mayor's arrest Posted: 23 Feb 2015 04:26 PM PST  CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro appears to have chosen his latest foe carefully.
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| Anderson expects sledging, heat from Australia Posted: 23 Feb 2015 04:18 PM PST  New Zealand all-rounder Corey Anderson admits his players are braced for a verbal onslaught from Australia in their blockbuster World Cup clash in Auckland on Saturday. As a result, Anderson feels the Black Caps will face a charged-up Australia, but insists if the sledging starts, it will be one-way traffic. "Their sledging tactics are well known now and something we haven't involved ourselves in," Anderson told reporters. Anderson, 24, said that despite the two sides not having completed a match against each other since the 2011 World Cup when Australia won by seven wickets, there will be few surprises come game day.
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| Mexico: Protest note over pope's purported drugs comment Posted: 23 Feb 2015 04:17 PM PST MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico will send a protest note to the Vatican over purported comments by Pope Francis worrying about a possible "Mexicanization" of his native Argentina due to rising drug trafficking activity there, authorities announced Monday. |
| Mayer into 2nd round in Buenos Aires; Nadal tries to rebound Posted: 23 Feb 2015 04:06 PM PST  BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — No. 5-seeded Leonardo Mayer of Argentina reached the second round of the Argentina Open on Monday, defeating Stephane Robert of France 6-0, 6-1.
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| Girl bomber kills 5 in northeastern Nigerian market Posted: 23 Feb 2015 03:59 PM PST  POTISKUM, Nigeria (AP) — A girl as young as 10 blew herself up in a busy market in northeastern Nigeria, killing herself and four others, and fueling fears Islamic extremists are using kidnapped girls as suicide bombers.
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| US Marine who vanished in Iraq gets 2 years in prison Posted: 23 Feb 2015 03:58 PM PST  RALEIGH, North Carolina (AP) — A U.S. Marine who vanished a decade ago in Iraq was sentenced Monday to two years in prison for leaving his post there and then fleeing to Lebanon after a brief return to the U.S.
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| US, Iran see progress in nuclear talks, but ways to go Posted: 23 Feb 2015 03:46 PM PST  The United States and Iran said Monday they had made progress in the latest round of talks on Tehran's nuclear programme, but warned there was still a long way to go to seal a final deal. Negotiators for Iran and six world powers had been meeting in Geneva since Friday, and plan further talks in Switzerland next week, a senior US administration official said. "These were serious, useful and constructive discussions," the official said after US Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif wrapped up two days of meetings in the lakeside city. As a March 31 deadline looms for reaching a political framework for a deal, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters in Washington that Kerry "could certainly participate at some point" in next week's negotiations, but she had nothing concrete to announce.
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| Canada: Oil train accident shows new safety rules inadequate Posted: 23 Feb 2015 03:44 PM PST  TORONTO (AP) — A fiery oil train derailment in Ontario this month suggests new safety requirements for tank cars carrying flammable liquids are inadequate, Canada's transport safety board announced Monday.
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| US jury orders Palestinians to pay over Jerusalem attacks Posted: 23 Feb 2015 03:26 PM PST  A US jury on Monday found Palestinian authorities liable for six attacks in Jerusalem that killed and injured Americans, awarding victims and their families more than $218 million in damages. Under the US anti-terrorism act, the damages are automatically tripled, meaning that the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) are liable to pay more than $650 million. Israel welcomed the decision as a "moral victory" but the Palestinians accused the lawsuit of being politically motivated and vowed to appeal. The jury reached its verdict following two half-days of deliberations, ending a landmark trial under US district judge George Daniels in New York that lasted more than five weeks.
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| US jury finds Palestinian groups liable for terror attacks Posted: 23 Feb 2015 03:22 PM PST  NEW YORK (AP) — The Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian Authority backed a series of terrorist attacks in the early 2000s in Israel that killed or wounded Americans, a U.S. jury found Monday in awarding hundreds of millions of dollars in damages at a high-stakes civil trial.
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| Hollande urges Internet firms to help fight online hate speech Posted: 23 Feb 2015 03:21 PM PST  By Elizabeth Pineau PARIS (Reuters) - French President Francois Hollande urged Internet companies like Google and Facebook on Monday to fight hate speech online, but his address to a Jewish group was marred by a spat between leaders of France's Jewish and Muslim communities. The row broke out after the head of the CRIF Jewish umbrella group said that young Muslims were the cause of all violent crime, prompting a leading Muslim group to boycott the Jewish group's annual dinner, at which Hollande was due to speak. "We need to say things clearly: all violence today is committed by young Muslims," Roger Cukierman told Europe 1 radio.
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| Dyche hits back at Mourinho's ref rant Posted: 23 Feb 2015 03:08 PM PST  Burnley manager Sean Dyche has responded angrily to Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho's criticism of referee Martin Atkinson and Clarets forward Ashley Barnes. Mourinho was furious with Atkinson and Barnes after Chelsea midfielder Nemanja Matic was sent off for shoving the Burnley player in response to a nasty tackle high on his shin at Stamford Bridge on Saturday. Struggling Burnley took advantage of their numerical superiority to snatch a shock 1-1 draw against the Premier League leaders, prompting Mourinho to slam Atkinson and describe Barnes' challenge as "criminal" during a lengthy television interview on Sunday.
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| Report: Mossad was less alarmed than Israel premier on Iran Posted: 23 Feb 2015 03:04 PM PST  JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel's Mossad spy agency in October 2012 had a less alarmist view of Iran's nuclear program than an assessment delivered by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the United Nations just a few weeks earlier, according to a purported secret cable published Monday by two media outlets.
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| Mexico rescues more than100 animals from overcrowded zoo Posted: 23 Feb 2015 02:57 PM PST  MEXICO CITY (AP) — More than 100 animals were rescued from overcrowded, abusive conditions at a private zoo in the state of Puebla, Mexican authorities said Monday.
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| Israel hails US anti-PA ruling as 'moral victory' Posted: 23 Feb 2015 02:57 PM PST  Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman Monday hailed a US jury's order for Palestinian authorities to pay $218 million in damages to American victims of 2002-2004 attacks in Israel as a "moral victory". "This decision constitutes above all a moral victory for the state of Israel and for victims of terrorism," Lieberman said. "Terrorism is an integral part of the very structure of the Palestinian Authority," Lieberman charged. A jury in New York ordered Palestinian authorities to pay the damages to American victims of six separate attacks in Israel between 2002 and 2004.
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| Canada bedbug fumigation kills baby, sends four to hospital Posted: 23 Feb 2015 02:50 PM PST  A baby died and four young siblings were in critical condition after they were accidentally exposed to bedbug fumigation chemicals at their western Canada home, police said Monday. Corporal George Cameron of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police told AFP the children were rushed to the hospital Sunday after firefighters responded to a chemical spill in a home in Fort McMurray, about 400 kilometers (250 miles) north of Edmonton, Alberta.
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| Napoli beats Sassuolo 2-0 to close in on 2nd-placed Roma Posted: 23 Feb 2015 02:47 PM PST  MILAN (AP) — Napoli beat Sassuolo 2-0 at home to move to within three points of second-placed Roma in Serie A on Monday.
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| Burberry hosts starry show at London Fashion Week Posted: 23 Feb 2015 02:43 PM PST  LONDON (AP) — London Fashion Week rolled out the big guns Monday, with British design powerhouse Burberry hosting the glitziest catwalk show of the season. Hunter, the maker of the classic Wellington boots, evoked wild Scottish countryside with indoor waterfalls, while Christopher Kane seduced with clothes featuring nude life drawings.
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| Ice storm hits parts of Texas, canceling flights, crippling traffic Posted: 23 Feb 2015 02:40 PM PST By Lisa Maria Garza DALLAS (Reuters) - An ice storm battered parts of Texas on Monday, knocking out power to thousands of homes, causing hundreds of traffic accidents and prompting more than 1,500 flight cancellations. A large section of the U.S. South from Arkansas to North Carolina was expected to experience freezing temperatures and winter storms on Monday, the National Weather Service said. Snow and freezing rain fell in parts of New Mexico, and Colorado, Utah and northern Arizona were also under winter storm warnings, the weather service said. At Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, one of the busiest in the United States and a hub for American Airlines, nearly 1,100 flights were canceled as of 3 p.m. CST (2100 GMT), according to tracking service FlightAware.com. |
| Egypt jails 2011 revolt activist Abdel Fattah for five years Posted: 23 Feb 2015 02:36 PM PST  An Egyptian court on Monday sentenced Alaa Abdel Fattah, a leading dissident in the 2011 uprising that toppled strongman Hosni Mubarak, to five years in prison over an illegal protest. The remaining 24 defendants in the case received sentences ranging from three to 15 years. The defendants in the caged dock mockingly applauded when the judge pronounced the verdict, as relatives and supporters in the courtroom chanted: "Down with military rule". Once described by the authorities as an "icon of the revolution" of 2011, Abdel Fattah had initially been sentenced to 15 years in jail but a court ordered a retrial.
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| French president Hollande vows stiffer penalties for hate speech Posted: 23 Feb 2015 02:36 PM PST  French President Francois Hollande vowed Monday to introduce tougher penalties for "racist, anti-semitic or homophobic" remarks in the wake of last month's terrorist attacks in Paris. Hollande said anti-semitism should be treated as an aggravating circumstance in the prosecution of all offences. Earlier Monday, Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve announced that the authorities had confiscated the passports of six people suspected of planning to travel to the Middle East to wage jihad.
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| Burkina police seize 1,300 tonnes soda cans with fake dates Posted: 23 Feb 2015 02:36 PM PST  The drinks, in fact past their sell-by date, were intended for sale in Burkina Faso and were imported from Tunisia, via Togo. At least 12 people have been arrested, said Oumar Soulama, the officer in charge of the investigation. The director of the company importing the soft drinks was among those arrested.
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| 15,000 Egyptians flee Libya after warning Posted: 23 Feb 2015 02:35 PM PST  Almost 15,000 Egyptians have flocked home from war-torn Libya via the border crossing at Sallum, state media reported Monday, after Islamic State group jihadists murdered 21 Coptic Christians. Last week Egyptian and Libyan warplanes hit IS targets inside Libya after the jihadists released a gruesome video on February 15 showing the Christians, 20 of them Egyptian, being beheaded. Cairo has since urged the hundreds of thousands of Egyptians working in Libya to leave, and also chartered planes to fly many of them home from Tunisia, Libya's western neighbour. At least 14,585 have heeded the call and returned through Sallum in northwest Egypt, state news agency MENA reported.
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| Jailed Mauritanian slavery activists announce hunger strike Posted: 23 Feb 2015 02:28 PM PST  Three jailed Mauritanian anti-slavery activists went on hunger strike Monday to protest their treatment by prison authorities, their campaign group said in a statement. Biram Ould Dah Ould Abeid, the runner-up in 2014 presidential elections, is serving two years in the central Aleg prison, along with aide Bilal Ramdane and Djiby Sow, a civic and cultural rights campaigner.
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