Yahoo! News: World News

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• Exclusive: Russia masses heavy firepower on border with Ukraine - witness
• Emboldened in Syria and Iraq, Islamic State may be reaching limits of expansion
• Pentagon chief urges end to island-building in South China Sea
• All at sea: Australia's search for MH370 under scrutiny
• Air strikes kill at least 80 in deadliest bombings of Yemen war
• Britons to be asked in referendum to vote 'Yes' to stay in EU
• US senator in Cuba says normal relations 'weeks away'
• Top Asian News at 12:00 a.m. GMT
• Referendum to ask should Britain 'remain' member of EU
• Brumbies, Bulls meet in crucial Super Rugby showdown
• Stanford wins NCAA women's golf title
• Greece says deal close, Schaeuble quashes optimism
• UAW rival at VW represented by 'union avoidance' expert
• US, Swiss target top soccer officials in corruption probe
• Norway's king opens Arctic drilling conference in Alaska
• Bacca the star as Sevilla beats Dnipro, wins Europa League
• U.N. council urges end to impunity for attacks on journalists
• Hundreds evacuated in Texas after storms leave at least 15 dead
• Crocodiles born in Sweden to be released in Cuban swamp
• 12 schemes outlined by prosecutors in soccer indictment
• New official James Bond novel to be called 'Trigger Mortis'
• UK leader travels to 4 EU states to press case for reform
• UK government announces EU referendum in Queen's Speech
• How FIFA works: from the congress to executive committee
• THE LATEST: English football chairman says Blatter must go
• Canada wildfires rage on, intensify near oil sands sites
• German city evacuates 20,000 people to defuse WWII bomb
• Brazil protesters demand Rousseff impeachment
• Chief of Al-Qaeda's Syria affiliate pledges no attacks on the West
• Darmstadt returns to Bundesliga after 33 years
• Norway's $900 billion sovereign fund told to reduce coal assets
• Ex-FIFA vice president Warner arrested, granted $2.5M bail
• Hundreds rally in Myanmar over 'boat people' crisis
• Over 2,500 migrants still adrift, U.N. says ahead of SE Asia meeting
• South Africa say bribery claim 'baseless'
• Cameroonians donate 3 mn euros to help army fight Boko Haram
• Texas floods spur drug purges from waiting ships: police
• Analysis: Against IS, airstrikes may not suffice
• Albania, Serbia pledge to work for Balkans' stability
• Islamic State suicide attacks in Iraq's Anbar kill 17 troops

Exclusive: Russia masses heavy firepower on border with Ukraine - witness Posted: 27 May 2015 12:38 PM PDT By Maria Tsvetkova KHUTOR CHKALOVA, Russia (Reuters) - Russia's army is massing troops and hundreds of pieces of weaponry including mobile rocket launchers, tanks and artillery at a makeshift base near the border with Ukraine, a Reuters reporter saw this week. As such, they match the appearance of some of the forces spotted in eastern Ukraine, which Kiev and its Western allies allege are covert Russian detachments. The scene at the base on the Kuzminsky firing range, around 50 km (30 miles) from the border, offers some of the clearest evidence to date of what appeared to be a concerted Russian military build-up in the area.

Emboldened in Syria and Iraq, Islamic State may be reaching limits of expansion Posted: 27 May 2015 10:41 AM PDT By Peter Graff LONDON (Reuters) - With its two biggest victories in nearly a year in Iraq and Syria, Islamic State has energized its fighters, littered the streets of two cities with the bodies of its enemies and forced Washington to re-examine its strategy. The near simultaneous capture this month of Ramadi west of Baghdad and Palmyra northeast of Damascus has reinforced the sway of the self-proclaimed caliphate of all Muslims closer to the ramparts of Islam's two great historic capitals. In both Iraq and Syria they have lost ground in recent months as well as gained it.

Pentagon chief urges end to island-building in South China Sea Posted: 27 May 2015 02:28 PM PDT By David Alexander U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter on Wednesday called for an immediate end to island-building by China and other countries near the South China Sea, urging the participants to stop militarizing the dispute and find a peaceful solution. Carter said China's island-building efforts were "out of step" with the regional consensus and that U.S. military aircraft and warships would continue to operate in the area as permitted under international law. "China's actions are bringing countries in the region together in new ways," he said in a military ceremony in Hawaii.

All at sea: Australia's search for MH370 under scrutiny Posted: 27 May 2015 02:04 PM PDT By Swati Pandey and Jane Wardell SYDNEY (Reuters) - Nearly a year after embarking on a multi-million dollar quest to solve one of aviation's greatest unsolved mysteries, authorities and search teams are being criticised over their approach to finding Flight MH370 in the remote southern Indian Ocean. The Australian-led search, already the most expensive in aviation history, has found no trace of the Malaysia Airlines jet or its 239 passengers and crew, prompting calls for a rethink into the way the mission is conducted. Heightening concerns, Australian authorities said on Wednesday that another search vessel, the Go Phoenix, which is using the world's best deep sea search equipment and crew provided by U.S. firm Phoenix International Holdings Inc, would pull out within weeks.

Air strikes kill at least 80 in deadliest bombings of Yemen war Posted: 27 May 2015 05:53 AM PDT By Mohammed Ghobari CAIRO (Reuters) - Saudi-led air strikes killed at least 80 people near Yemen's border with Saudi Arabia and in the capital Sanaa on Wednesday, residents said, the deadliest day of bombing in over two months of war in Yemen. Iranian-backed Houthi rebels seized Sanaa last September and then thrust into central and south Yemen. Seeing the Houthi advance as a bridgehead for Iranian influence in the region, a Saudi-led coalition began air strikes on March 26 in a campaign to restore Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to power.

Britons to be asked in referendum to vote 'Yes' to stay in EU Posted: 27 May 2015 04:06 PM PDT By Kylie MacLellan and William James LONDON (Reuters) - Britons will be asked to vote "yes" if they want to stay in the European Union when a referendum is held in the next two years, the government said on Thursday. The question they will be asked on the ballot paper will be: "Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union?" The wording is seen as significant because the "in" campaign will be able to brand itself as the "yes" campaign -- perhaps casting itself in a more positive light than its opponents. The government made the disclosure as it prepared to publish a law guaranteeing the referendum will be held before the end of 2017 and as Prime Minister David Cameron embarked on a two-day tour of European capitals to win support for his EU reform drive.

US senator in Cuba says normal relations 'weeks away' Posted: 27 May 2015 05:07 PM PDT HAVANA (AP) — The historic process of restoring long-severed diplomatic relationship between the U.S. and Cuba that began Dec. 17 will likely come to a successful end in a matter of weeks, a U.S. senator said during a visit to the island Wednesday.

Top Asian News at 12:00 a.m. GMT Posted: 27 May 2015 05:02 PM PDT UKHIYA, Bangladesh (AP) — The traffickers spun stories that were unimaginable to their listeners, many who hailed from tiny Bangladeshi villages where almost no one earns more than a few dollars a day. First, there would be the boat: A huge boat where people could spread out comfortably, where the food would be plentiful and delicious. They would be treated with decency while on board and at the end of a week or so they would be quietly dropped off in Malaysia and given high-paying jobs.

Referendum to ask should Britain 'remain' member of EU Posted: 27 May 2015 04:58 PM PDT Voters will be asked "Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union?" in a referendum to be held by 2017, the British government announced on Thursday. The wording is laid out in legislation for the referendum, to be introduced into parliament on Thursday by the centre-right government of Prime Minister David Cameron. "It will pave the way for the British people to have their say for the first time in forty years on our place in the EU," a source in Cameron's office said.

Brumbies, Bulls meet in crucial Super Rugby showdown Posted: 27 May 2015 04:54 PM PDT WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — The Super Rugby clash between the ACT Brumbies and Pretoria-based Bulls on Friday epitomizes the higher stakes at play as the tournament enters its last three regular season rounds.

Stanford wins NCAA women's golf title Posted: 27 May 2015 04:43 PM PDT BRADENTON, Fla. (AP) — Mariah Stackhouse rallied to beat Hayley Davis in 19 holes to give Stanford its first NCAA women's golf title, 3-2 over Baylor on Wednesday.

Greece says deal close, Schaeuble quashes optimism Posted: 27 May 2015 04:39 PM PDT ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greece's cash-strapped government insisted Wednesday it was "very close" to reaching a vital deal with bailout lenders, but the optimism in Athens was swiftly shot down by German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble.

UAW rival at VW represented by 'union avoidance' expert Posted: 27 May 2015 04:36 PM PDT NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The rival group to the United Auto Workers union at the Volkswagen plant in Tennessee brands itself as local, independent and free of outside influence or political agenda.

US, Swiss target top soccer officials in corruption probe Posted: 27 May 2015 04:32 PM PDT ZURICH (AP) — The U.S. government launched an attack on what it called deep-seated and brazen corruption in soccer's global governing body Wednesday, pulling FIFA executives out of a luxury Swiss hotel to face racketeering charges and raiding regional offices in Miami.

Norway's king opens Arctic drilling conference in Alaska Posted: 27 May 2015 04:31 PM PDT ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Norway's king opened a conference on Arctic offshore drilling Wednesday with a plug for incorporating his country's expertise into drilling off Alaska's northern shores.

Bacca the star as Sevilla beats Dnipro, wins Europa League Posted: 27 May 2015 04:26 PM PDT WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Sevilla won the Europa League for a record fourth time, with two goals from Carlos Bacca steering the Spanish club to a 3-2 win over Ukraine's Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk in Wednesday's final.

U.N. council urges end to impunity for attacks on journalists Posted: 27 May 2015 04:19 PM PDT The United Nations Security Council on Wednesday condemned the frequent attacks against journalists worldwide and demanded an end to the impunity enjoyed by those guilty of violent crimes against members of the press. The appeal came in the form of a unanimously adopted resolution that also called for the release of all media professionals "who have been kidnapped or taken as hostages, in situations of armed conflict." The resolution was drafted by this month's Security Council president, Lithuania, whose Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius presided over the meeting. Mariane Pearl, a journalist and widow of Daniel Pearl, a Wall Street Journal reporter who was beheaded by Pakistani militants in 2002, told the 15-nation council that it was "a troubled time for our profession." "In 2014, impunity in journalism murder cases reached a staggering 96 percent and the remaining 4 percent obtained only partial justice," she said.

Hundreds evacuated in Texas after storms leave at least 15 dead Posted: 27 May 2015 04:19 PM PDT By Jon Herskovitz AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - Hundreds of people were ordered to evacuate flood-threatened areas of Texas on Wednesday as storms bringing torrential rains battered the state, where at least 15 people have been killed in weather-related incidents this week, including six in Houston. People were told to stay away from more than 200 homes in Parker County where the Brazos River was poised to overflow its banks about 30 miles (50 km) west of Fort Worth on Wednesday night, county officials said. "The river is coming up fast and flowing at dangerous volumes," Parker County Judge Mark Riley told a news conference, adding shelters were available.

Crocodiles born in Sweden to be released in Cuban swamp Posted: 27 May 2015 04:14 PM PDT HAVANA (AP) — Ten young female crocodiles born in Sweden are to be released in their parents' former swampy home in Cuba after being returned to the Caribbean island.

12 schemes outlined by prosecutors in soccer indictment Posted: 27 May 2015 04:10 PM PDT The indictment of soccer officials and marketing and TV executives Wednesday alleges 12 schemes:

New official James Bond novel to be called 'Trigger Mortis' Posted: 27 May 2015 04:08 PM PDT LONDON (AP) — James Bond will be reunited with Pussy Galore in a new novel to be published this year.

UK leader travels to 4 EU states to press case for reform Posted: 27 May 2015 04:08 PM PDT LONDON (AP) — Prime Minister David Cameron is setting off Thursday on a whirlwind visit to four European capitals, pressing his case that Britain needs to renegotiate its relationship with the 27 other members of the bloc.

UK government announces EU referendum in Queen's Speech Posted: 27 May 2015 04:08 PM PDT Prime Minister David Cameron's government formally announced Wednesday it will hold a referendum on whether Britain should leave the EU in a policy speech read by Queen Elizabeth II on Westminster's grandest day. Outlining the newly-elected government's plans for its first year, the 89-year-old queen, in a crown and ceremonial dress, confirmed Britain would face further austerity to cut its deficit. "It's a Queen's Speech for working people from a one nation government that will bring our country together," Cameron told the House of Commons after the monarch's address.

How FIFA works: from the congress to executive committee Posted: 27 May 2015 04:08 PM PDT ZURICH (AP) — From its sleek headquarters in Zurich, FIFA has become a financial giant under Sepp Blatter.

THE LATEST: English football chairman says Blatter must go Posted: 27 May 2015 04:00 PM PDT ZURICH (AP) — The Latest on FIFA developments:

Canada wildfires rage on, intensify near oil sands sites Posted: 27 May 2015 03:50 PM PDT By Nia Williams and Scott Haggett CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - A wildfire raging in northeastern Alberta near two major oil sands projects nearly doubled in size to 17,000 hectares (42,000 acres) on Wednesday, although firefighters made some progress tackling blazes elsewhere in the oil-rich Western Canadian province. The fires have forced energy companies operating in Alberta, the largest source of U.S. oil imports, to shut in 233,000 barrels per day of production, or roughly 10 percent of total oil sands output. Scott Long of the Alberta Emergency Management Agency said the fire on the Canadian military's Cold Lake Air Weapons Range (CLAWR), near the oil sands projects, was still out of control even though 250 firefighters were battling to contain it.

German city evacuates 20,000 people to defuse WWII bomb Posted: 27 May 2015 03:48 PM PDT Residents living within a kilometre (about half a mile) of the site were told to leave their homes, among them around 1,100 people from a large old people's and care home, city officials said. Schools in the area as well as Cologne Zoo, also within the danger zone, were closed for the day. The unexploded US-made device, which lay five metres (16 feet) underground, was discovered on Friday on the left bank of the Rhine river near Muelheim bridge, city officials said.

Brazil protesters demand Rousseff impeachment Posted: 27 May 2015 03:41 PM PDT Brasília (AFP) - Several hundred protesters gathered Wednday in Brasilia to demand the impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff after they completed a 1,000-kilometer (650-mile) march on the capital. Some two dozen marchers from the Free Brazil Movement (MBL), a growing conservative force in Brazil, marched on Congress, where they were received by opposition lawmakers and also the president of the Chamber of lawmakers, Eduardo Cunha. "We have brought to Brasilia, the seat of power, the demands of the street.

Chief of Al-Qaeda's Syria affiliate pledges no attacks on the West Posted: 27 May 2015 03:41 PM PDT Al-Qaeda's Syria affiliate would not use Syria as a launching pad for attacks on the West, its chief said in a wide-ranging televised interview late Wednesday. Without showing his face, Abu Mohamed al-Jolani said his group, Al-Nusra Front, would protect Syrian minorities that renounced the regime. "Our mission in Syria is the downfall of the regime, its symbols, and its allies, like Hezbollah," Jolani said, referring to the powerful Shiite movement fighting alongside the Bashar al-Assad regime.

Darmstadt returns to Bundesliga after 33 years Posted: 27 May 2015 03:40 PM PDT FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Arjen Robben, Franck Ribery and their fellow Bayern Munich stars will be in unknown territory when they and other Bundesliga clubs visit Darmstadt next season. Perhaps there will be hot water in the locker room by then.

Norway's $900 billion sovereign fund told to reduce coal assets Posted: 27 May 2015 03:38 PM PDT By Stine Jacobsen OSLO (Reuters) - Norway's $900 billion sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, should cut its exposure to the global coal industry and sell stakes in firms that focus on the sector, a key parliamentary committee said on Wednesday. The finance committee agreed in a bipartisan motion that the fund, which owns about 1.3 percent of all listed companies globally, should sell stakes in firms that generate more than 30 percent of their output or revenues from coal-related activities. Already under pressure from Norway's political establishment, the fund has been selling down its coal portfolio and said its holdings were already small.

Ex-FIFA vice president Warner arrested, granted $2.5M bail Posted: 27 May 2015 03:37 PM PDT PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad (AP) — Former FIFA vice president Jack Warner was expected to spend Wednesday night in jail after surrendering to face an arrest warrant issued at the request of U.S. authorities, who filed corruption charges against him and 13 others tied to international soccer.

Hundreds rally in Myanmar over 'boat people' crisis Posted: 27 May 2015 03:34 PM PDT By Aubrey Belford and Hnin Yadana Zaw YANGON (Reuters) - Hundreds of protesters marched through the streets of Myanmar's largest city of Yangon on Wednesday to denounce foreign criticism of the country's treatment of stateless Rohingya Muslims. About 300 people, led by about 30 Buddhist monks, shouted slogans against the United Nations and Western media, who they accuse of unfairly blaming Myanmar for a "boat people" crisis that has seen thousands of trafficked Rohingya and Bangladeshi migrants wash up in Southeast Asia in recent weeks. Protest leaders argued that the vast majority of those who have landed or been rescued at sea were citizens of neighboring Bangladesh, who were pretending to be Rohingya in order to receive refugee protection.

Over 2,500 migrants still adrift, U.N. says ahead of SE Asia meeting Posted: 27 May 2015 03:34 PM PDT By Amy Sawitta Lefevre BANGKOK (Reuters) - More than 2,500 migrants could still be stranded on boats in the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea, according to estimates by the United Nations, as Thailand prepares to host a regional meeting it said was focused on "immediate action" to tackle the crisis. Thousands of Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar and migrants from Bangladesh have tried to land in Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia since a Thai crackdown on people smugglers in early May led to trafficker crews abandoning them at sea. Regional governments have struggled to respond, although images of desperate people crammed aboard overloaded boats with little food or water prompted Indonesia and Malaysia to soften their initial reluctance to allow the migrants to come ashore.

South Africa say bribery claim 'baseless' Posted: 27 May 2015 03:31 PM PDT South Africa have dismissed as "baseless" allegations made Wednesday in a US indictment that the country paid $10 million (nine million euros) in bribes to host the 2010 World Cup. "We are disappointed at the baseless and untested allegations and request proof from anyone who has contrary evidence," national football association spokesman Dominic Chimhavi said. South African sports minister Fikile Mbalula said he would comment Thursday on the allegations.

Cameroonians donate 3 mn euros to help army fight Boko Haram Posted: 27 May 2015 03:29 PM PDT Yaoundé (AFP) - A fundraising campaign to help Cameroon's army battle Nigeria's feared Boko Haram fighters has brought in more than three million euros and hundreds of tonnes of food, local media said Wednesday. "2.1 billion CFA francs (3.2 million euros) already" collected to help troops fighting the Islamist group on Cameroon's northern border with Nigeria, said the national CRTV radio and TV network.

Texas floods spur drug purges from waiting ships: police Posted: 27 May 2015 03:22 PM PDT By Jim Forsyth SAN ANTONIO (Reuters) - The storm system pelting Texas with torrential rains this week has caused a stream of illegal drugs to wash up on the shores around Galveston, near a backed-up Houston Shipping Channel, police said on Wednesday. With fewer ships coming into port where entry has been slowed due to the storms, there have been more onboard inspections, and more people have been dumping contraband into the water before the U.S. officials turn up in their cabin, police said. "Six wash-ups within the last week," said Sergeant Joshua Schirard of the Galveston Police.

Analysis: Against IS, airstrikes may not suffice Posted: 27 May 2015 03:20 PM PDT BAGHDAD (AP) — It's the modern era's military strategy of choice: overwhelming air power delivering precision-guided punishment backed by intelligence on the ground, with minimal exposure for soldiers of the striking side.

Albania, Serbia pledge to work for Balkans' stability Posted: 27 May 2015 03:09 PM PDT The prime ministers of Serbia and Albania, Aleksandar Vucic and Edi Rama, in an historic visit vowed to strengthen their fragile ties in the interests of the future stability of the Balkans. "There was a chilly period between Belgrade and Tirana but this (Vucic's) visit is a sign of the will of the two countries even if we are far from agreeing on all" issues, Rama said at a joint press conference marking the first visit by a Serbian head of government. At the heart of the mutual friction was Kosovo, the former Serbian province with an ethnic Albanian majority which unilaterally declared independence in 2008.

Islamic State suicide attacks in Iraq's Anbar kill 17 troops Posted: 27 May 2015 02:58 PM PDT BAGHDAD (AP) — As Iraqi forces gathered for a major new offensive to try to take back the sprawling Sunni heartland of Anbar province, Islamic State militants struck first, unleashing a wave of suicide bombings that killed at least 17 soldiers.

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