| Migrants undeterred by Balkan storms and Hungarian clampdown Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:01 PM PDT  By Yannis Behrakis IDOMENI, Greece (Reuters) - Thousands of refugees trudged through mud and torrential rain to Greece's border with Macedonia on Thursday, swelling a human tide across Europe that authorities appear powerless to control. Hungary, a key transit country for migrants trying to reach richer and more welcoming countries such as Germany and Sweden, said it expected to finish building a fence along its border with Serbia by early October to help stem the flow. Denmark, the latest front line in the continent's migrant crisis, allowed refugees to move freely through its territory to Sweden, a day after it shut a motorway link with Germany in a bid to halt the flow of people.
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| Russia raises stakes on Syria ahead of U.N. meeting in New York Posted: 10 Sep 2015 01:08 AM PDT  By Gabriela Baczynska and Lidia Kelly MOSCOW (Reuters) - By refusing to clarify the scale of its military presence in Syria, Russia keeps the West fearing a considerable build-up to win a stronger bargaining position when world powers sit down to talks on the conflict, Western diplomats in Moscow said. Russia's central demand now is that its long-time ally, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, should be included in international efforts to contain the militants who have called themselves Islamic State and control large tracts of Syria. U.S. officials said on Wednesday Russia had sent two tank landing ships and additional aircraft to Syria and deployed a small number of forces there.
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| U.S. to accept 10,000 Syrian refugees: White House Posted: 10 Sep 2015 04:48 PM PDT By Julia Edwards WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama has directed his administration to prepare to take in at least 10,000 Syrian refugees over the next year, the White House said on Thursday. It is the first specific commitment the United States has made toward increasing its acceptance of refugees from the war-torn country. Since the start of the Syrian civil war in 2011, the United States has taken in 1,500 refugees, with 300 more expected to be cleared by October. |
| U.N. says Yemen peace talks set to resume next week Posted: 10 Sep 2015 02:35 PM PDT  The United Nations on Thursday said peace talks aimed at ending the conflict in Yemen are set to resume next week in the region and urged all parties to participate "in good faith." Saudi Arabia and Arab allies intervened in March to try to restore Yemen's president to power and roll back the Iranian-allied Houthi militia. The war has brought the country to the brink of famine and peace talks have yet to end the fighting. A U.N. press official said U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon's special envoy on Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, welcomed the commitment of Yemen's government, the Houthis and Yemen's General People's Congress to join the talks, which will take place in the region next week.
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| EU, Cuba enter difficult phase of bilateral talks, focus on political pact Posted: 10 Sep 2015 04:53 PM PDT  By Daniel Trotta HAVANA (Reuters) - The European Union and Cuba entered the most difficult phase of their bilateral talks on Thursday when they started to discuss a new political agreement to replace a unilateral policy imposed by the Europeans 19 years ago. Both sides reported on Thursday that two of the three pillars of a deal, on trade and cooperation, were basically finished, and they started talking about a political agreement between the 28-nation bloc and the communist-run Caribbean island. The EU's decision last year to open talks was a victory in itself for Cuba as a European acknowledgment it would have to scrap its "common position," which placed a priority on democratic reforms and improved human rights in Cuba.
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| Love and loathing greet pope's appeal for parishes to host refugees Posted: 10 Sep 2015 12:15 PM PDT  By Philip Pullella ROME (Reuters) - At a recent meeting of Catholic parishioners in the small town of Castelgomberto in northern Italy, a man got up and shouted "My grandfather built that place for priests, not for Muslims". "It was a pretty stormy meeting," said Father Lucio Mozzo, pastor to six parishes in the area, who was trying to convince residents to allow a family of refugees to move into a disused vicarage in a nearby valley. In an unprecedented gesture last Sunday, Pope Francis appealed to every Catholic parish, religious community and sanctuary in Europe to take in a family of refugees, saying he would set the example by hosting two families in parishes inside the Vatican.. The Roman Catholic Church's capacity to help refugees in parishes from Sicily to Sweden is huge, but the success of the appeal will depend on how many parishes take action.
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| Top Asian News at 12:00 a.m. GMT Posted: 10 Sep 2015 05:03 PM PDT THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The Dutch foreign minister says an aid worker kidnapped in June in Afghanistan has been released after 81 days and is in good health. Foreign Minister Bert Koenders said Thursday night that Anja de Beer, who was seized June 22 by armed men in Kabul, was "doing well under the circumstances" after her release and has spoken to her family from the Dutch Embassy. |
| Thompson, Lee share lead at 66 in Evian Championship Posted: 10 Sep 2015 04:54 PM PDT  EVIAN-LES-BAINS, France (AP) — Lexi Thompson played a four-hole stretch in 5 under and finished with a 5-under 66 on Thursday in the Evian Championship for a share of the lead with Mi Hyang Lee.
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| Europe divided as record numbers of migrants cross the continent Posted: 10 Sep 2015 04:52 PM PDT  Röszke (Hungary) (AFP) - Europe was increasingly divided over its refugee crisis on Thursday as record numbers of migrants streamed through the Balkans into Hungary, forcing Austria to suspend cross-border train services. Germany, which is spearheading Europe's response to the emergency, warned that an EU plan to distribute 160,000 new arrivals among member states was a mere "drop in the ocean". As the historic influx continued unrelentingly, US President Barack Obama sought to respond to political pressure to help alleviate Europe's crisis by ordering his administration to admit at least 10,000 Syrian refugees next year, amid criticism Washington has been slow to help.
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| Northern Ireland first minister steps down amid impasse Posted: 10 Sep 2015 04:43 PM PDT  LONDON (AP) — The future of the Catholic-Protestant power-sharing government in Northern Ireland is hanging by a slender thread with First Minister Peter Robinson's decision Thursday to step down, along with all but one of his ministers, because of a series of disputes.
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| Record-breaker Rooney aims to steal spotlight from Martial Posted: 10 Sep 2015 04:40 PM PDT  Wayne Rooney has set his sights on stealing the spotlight from Manchester United new-boy Anthony Martial when England's freshly-crowned record goalscorer returns to Premier League action in Saturday's clash with bitter rivals Liverpool. Rooney passed Bobby Charlton as England's most prolific marksman when he netted his 50th international goal with a powerful penalty in Tuesday's 2-0 win over Switzerland at Wembley. It was a much-needed jolt of confidence for Rooney, whose only goals in United colours this term have come in a Champions League rout of Club Brugge.
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| US Open Women's Lookahead: Serena's Grand Slam bid resumes Posted: 10 Sep 2015 04:35 PM PDT  NEW YORK (AP) — Let everyone else go ahead and assume Serena Williams will beat Roberta Vinci of Italy in the U.S. Open semifinals.
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| Australian women's soccer tour of US officially off Posted: 10 Sep 2015 04:34 PM PDT  A tour by the Australian women's team to the United States this month was officially called off Thursday, a day after a players' union said stalled contract talks meant the Matildas would not make the trip.
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| UK's Cameron attacks Labour on eve of leadership result Posted: 10 Sep 2015 04:24 PM PDT  British Prime Minister David Cameron is to launch a fierce attack on the main opposition Labour party Friday, the day before it is expected to announce veteran socialist Jeremy Corbyn as its new leader. Cameron will say he has watched the Labour leadership contest with "bewilderment" and attack its economic policies in a speech in Leeds, northern England, according to advance extracts from his Downing Street office. Until now, the prime minister has largely steered clear of public comment on the Labour leadership contest.
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| White House: Obama wants to admit more Syrian refugees Posted: 10 Sep 2015 04:00 PM PDT  WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States is making plans to accept 10,000 Syrian refugees in the coming budget year, a significant increase from the 1,500 people who have been cleared to resettle in the U.S. since civil war broke out in the Middle Eastern country more than four years ago, the White House said Thursday.
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| Some memorable moments in the career of Money May Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:55 PM PDT  LAS VEGAS (AP) — The clock is ticking on Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s career. He claims his fight Saturday night with huge underdog Andre Berto will be his last, and he will leave boxing undefeated and very rich.
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| Jihadists put squeeze on Syria's Assad as Russia defends aid Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:53 PM PDT  Jihadists advanced on a regime airbase in eastern Syria on Thursday after the fall of one in the north, as staunch ally Russia defended its military aid to embattled President Bashar al-Assad. Moscow dismissed criticism of its intervention by Western states, which are carrying out air strikes on jihadists in both Syria and neighbouring Iraq but also seek Assad's ouster. "We helped, are continuing to help and will help the Syrian government when it comes to supplying the Syrian army with everything it needs," said Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
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| GE to sell transportation finance unit to BMO Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:51 PM PDT  US industrial conglomerate General Electric said Thursday it would sell the transportation finance unit of its GE Capital to Canada's BMO Financial Group. The transportation finance unit provides wholesale and commercial end-user financing to equipment makers, dealers and end users for heavy and medium-duty commercial trucks and trailers. "With the sale of our Transportation Finance business to BMO, we have again found a buyer with a customer centric culture who is committed to the industry and growing this business with the help of our tenured and experienced team," said Keith Sherin, GE Capital chairman and chief executive.
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| US Open Lookahead: Federer close to, yet far from, No. 18 Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:48 PM PDT  NEW YORK (AP) — More than three years have passed since Roger Federer won a Grand Slam title.
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| One killed as clashes erupt across I.Coast ahead of election Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:47 PM PDT  One person was killed as protesters torched vehicles and clashed with police in several Ivory Coast towns on Thursday, witnesses said, in the first major outbreak of trouble ahead of next month's presidential election. The protests were called by part of the opposition a day after the release by the Constitutional Council of the official list of 10 contenders running in the October 25 poll, including incumbent Alassane Ouattara. Opposition groups urged anti-Ouattara marches on the grounds that both of his parents were not Ivorian -- the same objection cited ahead of deadly unrest in 2010-2011 that left more than 3,000 dead following a presidential poll.
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| UN chief says will repatriate peacekeepers over sex abuse Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:45 PM PDT UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. chief is taking aim at sexual abuse by peacekeepers, "one of my greatest disappointments," saying he will repatriate the troops of countries that don't act on allegations and has already started to suspend payments to countries when allegations are credible. |
| US Open Glance Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:43 PM PDT NEW YORK (AP) — A look at Thursday's play at the $42.3 million U.S. Open tennis championships: |
| Holocaust memories sway 2 senators to support deal with Iran Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:41 PM PDT  WASHINGTON (AP) — Two senators who grew up hearing stories of the Holocaust say the memories of their relatives provided strong lessons about why they should support the nuclear accord with Iran.
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| Jet engine parts on Las Vegas runway indicate major failure Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:41 PM PDT  LAS VEGAS (AP) — Jet engine parts found on the Las Vegas runway where a British Airways flight aborted takeoff as the engine burst into flames indicate a rare catastrophic failure, experts said Thursday as investigators released preliminary findings and began analyzing flight data and cockpit recordings.
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| Sudan summons British ambassador over newspaper interview Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:40 PM PDT  Sudan's foreign ministry said it had summoned the British ambassador in Khartoum on Thursday over its "deep dissatisfaction" about an interview he gave to a local newspaper this week. The ministry summoned Michael Aron on Thursday afternoon over comments that it said depicted Sudan's foreign debts and the situation in the western Darfur region "in a negative way". Aron arrived in Sudan in mid-August and gave an interview to the political daily Al-Mijhar al-Siyasi that was published on Monday, in which he discussed Sudan's foreign debts and the situation in Darfur among other topics.
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| The Latest on US Open: And thanks to rain, that's a wrap Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:39 PM PDT  NEW YORK (AP) — The Latest on the U.S. Open (all times local):
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| Faithful 'hope for change' at final Corbyn rally in London Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:34 PM PDT  Chanting "Jez We Can" and wearing T-shirts celebrating their hero, supporters of Britain's Labour leadership favourite Jeremy Corbyn crammed into his final campaign rally Thursday after ballots closed in a vote set to upend British politics. Youthful and elderly fans of the 66-year-old socialist rebel said he represented a different kind of politics as he addressed the crowd from a stage in the domed Rock Tower church in Tufnell Park, north London -- his home turf. Supporters wore Labour-red rosettes, badges and T-shirts saying "Jeremy Corbyn For Labour Leader" at the gathering, which comes ahead of the announcement Saturday of the leadership election winner.
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| UN envoy announces new Yemen peace talks next week Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:26 PM PDT UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Warring parties in Yemen have agreed to take part in new peace talks in the region next week, the U.N. envoy for Yemen announced Thursday. |
| Palestinians allowed to raise flag at UN headquarters Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:26 PM PDT  The UN General Assembly voted on Thursday to allow the Palestinians to raise their flag at its headquarters in a diplomatic victory in their campaign for statehood. A resolution was adopted by member states with 119 in favor, eight voting against -- including Israel and the United States -- and 45 abstentions. The text allows the flags of Palestine and the Holy See -- both of which have non-member observer status -- to be hoisted alongside those of the member states.
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| Dutch aid worker freed in Afghanistan after 81 days Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:23 PM PDT  A Dutch aid worker who was abducted by unknown gunmen in June in Afghanistan has been freed after being held for 81 days, the Dutch foreign ministry said late Thursday. Anja de Beer was recovering in the Dutch embassy in Kabul and was "doing pretty well considering the circumstances," the ministry said in a statement. An experienced aid worker who spent more than 15 years working for UN agencies, de Beer had been posted in Kabul for several years and was working for the Swiss non-governmental organisation Helvetas when she was snatched on the streets in broad daylight.
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| UN envoy sees 'moment of truth' in Libya talks Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:23 PM PDT  The UN peace envoy for Libya, Bernardino Leon, said the latest round of peace talks launched in Morocco on Thursday could prove to be the "moment of truth". "We are starting a new round of talks in the Libya process, which we hope will be the final round, the moment of truth for the parties," he said in Skhirat near the Moroccan capital. Libya, torn apart since dictator Moamer Kadhafi's ouster in 2011, has two rival administrations -- a body in Tripoli known as the General National Congress (GNC) and an internationally recognised government based in Tobruk in the far east.
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| Insurgent attack on Syrian base kills 56 soldiers: monitor Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:20 PM PDT The rebel capture of a Syrian air base cost the lives of 56 government soldiers, a group monitoring the war said on Thursday, and has triggered shock and some criticism of army strategy among supporters of President Bashar al-Assad. An alliance of insurgents including al Qaeda's Syria wing Nusra Front seized the Abu al-Duhur military airport on Wednesday as Syrian troops withdrew from their last major stronghold in the northwestern Idlib province. Rami Abdulrahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said the 56 soldiers either died in combat or were killed afterwards by the insurgents. |
| Charging decision doesn't end police killing cases Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:17 PM PDT  SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — The decision by a local prosecutor to not charge three Pasco police officers with any crimes in the shooting death of a rock-throwing Mexican immigrant hardly concludes the matter.
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| Iran nuclear deal survives: Democrats block disapproval vote Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:09 PM PDT  WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Senate voted to uphold the hard-fought nuclear accord with Iran on Thursday, with Democrats overcoming ferocious Republican opposition and delivering President Barack Obama a legacy making victory on his top foreign policy priority.
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| Pacific leaders agree to disagree on climate change Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:09 PM PDT  A meeting of South Pacific nations has failed to reach agreement on tackling climate change, Kiribati President Anote Tong said Thursday after regional powers Australia and New Zealand refused to compromise. "It's not the best outcome that we would have liked," Tong said at the end of the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) leaders' retreat. The end of forum press conference was delayed more than two hours as leaders struggled to try to find a solution behind closed doors, and a joint communique was still not released by Friday morning.
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| Obama orders US to admit 10,000 Syrian refugees Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:05 PM PDT President Barack Obama has asked for at least 10,000 Syrian refugees to be admitted to the United States next year, amid criticism his government has done too little to help. Spokesman Josh Earnest on Thursday said Obama had asked staff to "scale up" the number of refugee admissions, which are likely to total around 1,800 in the fiscal year ending September 30. "He has informed his team that he would like them to make preparations to accept at least 10,000 Syrian refugees in the next fiscal year," said Earnest. |
| UK Labour's leadership vote closes with Corbyn favourite Posted: 10 Sep 2015 03:02 PM PDT  Voting closed Thursday in the leadership contest for Britain's main opposition Labour party as radical leftist favourite Jeremy Corbyn vowed to "change politics" to rapturous applause at his final campaign rally. Corbyn, a 66-year-old veteran rebel who only entered the leadership contest as a wildcard, has energised the race, drawing support from young and old alike with policies which include opposing austerity cuts and scrapping nuclear weapons. The low-key Corbyn is closer to European anti-austerity movements like Greece's Syriza and Spain's Podemos than to former Labour prime minister Tony Blair, whose centrist, pro-business policies alienated many of those now supporting Corbyn.
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