| Putin uses Assad visit to talk up Kremlin role as Syria broker Posted: 21 Oct 2015 09:38 AM PDT  By Andrew Osborn MOSCOW (Reuters) - Vladimir Putin used a rare visit to Moscow by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to talk up the Kremlin's potential to help broker a political settlement to the crisis as he tried to show the West Russia has become a major player in the Middle East. Assad flew to Moscow on Tuesday evening to thank Putin personally for his military support, in a surprise visit that Russian state media cast as a diplomatic coup. It was Assad's first foreign visit since the start of the Syrian crisis in 2011, and came three weeks after Russia launched a campaign of air strikes against Islamist militants and rebels in Syria that has bolstered Assad's forces.
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| Bad weather, border closures add to plight of migrants in Balkans Posted: 21 Oct 2015 08:40 AM PDT  By Maja Zuvela RIGONCI, Slovenia (Reuters) - Refugees from Asian wars crossed into Slovenia from Croatia on Wednesday as border closures elsewhere forced them to find new routes to rich European countries and concern grew over the plight of those stranded in wet, freezing weather. On the Croatian-Serbian border, thousands of migrants spent the night camped out at the Berkasovo-Bapska crossing after Croatia closed the gates. With many now trapped in deteriorating conditions in the Balkans, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker called an extraordinary meeting of several European leaders to take place on Sunday.
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| U.S., allies demand U.N. council action after Iran missile test Posted: 21 Oct 2015 03:15 PM PDT  The United States, Britain, France and Germany sent a letter to the United Nations Security Council's Iran sanctions committee on Wednesday notifying it of Tehran's recent missile test and demanded action in response to what they said was a violation. The letter, which was sent to the committee by the United States on behalf of the four countries, said the launch was in breach of Security Council resolutions and reiterated that the ballistic missile was "inherently capable of delivering a nuclear weapon." "We trust that this information will assist the Committee in its responsibility to examine and take appropriate action in response to violations of U.N. Security Council resolutions," said the letter, which was seen by Reuters.
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| Taliban insurgents active close to Kabul, threat level disputed Posted: 21 Oct 2015 03:50 PM PDT  By Hamid Shalizi KHAWAJA GHAR, Afghanistan (Reuters) - In Khawaja Ghar, a village in Deh Sabz district on the dusty outskirts of Kabul, there is little noticeable government presence, and Afghan soldiers and police are a rare sight. In fact, you are almost as likely to come across a Taliban fighter, residents of Khawaja Ghar and surrounding settlements say, as militants waging an increasingly bold insurgency to overthrow the government roam with impunity on its doorstep. For years it has used areas of Deh Sabz to fire inaccurate, and usually ineffective rockets at Kabul and its airport to try to disrupt daily life.
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| U.N.'s Ban presses for Israeli-Palestinian calm but tensions smolder Posted: 21 Oct 2015 12:06 PM PDT  By Ali Sawafta RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon held talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Wednesday but after two days of discussions in the region appeared no nearer to ending weeks of Israeli-Palestinian violence. At a news conference with Abbas in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Ban denounced "hateful discourse" on both sides and said Israel's response to Palestinian knife attacks had "added to the already difficult challenges of restoring calm". Among the causes of the turmoil are Palestinians' anger at what they see as Jewish encroachment on the al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem's walled Old City, Islam's holiest site outside Saudi Arabia, which is also revered by Jews as the location of two ancient Jewish temples.
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| Exclusive: Shipping traffic to Syria surges as Russia steps up offensive Posted: 21 Oct 2015 11:57 AM PDT  By Jonathan Saul and Maria Tsvetkova LONDON/MOSCOW (Reuters) - More than 100 cargo vessels have reached Syria in the past few weeks, in the biggest buildup in shipping for over a year as Russia steps up its support for ally President Bashar al-Assad. The ships have arrived directly from Russia, Black Sea ports such as Constantza in Romania as well as from Lebanon and Egypt, according to shipping data, maritime intelligence and international trade sources. Russia has not issued any orders for the delivery of goods to Syria, a Russian government spokeswoman said.
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| New species of tortoise in Galapagos claimed Posted: 21 Oct 2015 04:58 PM PDT  QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — Scientists announced Wednesday the discovery of a new species of giant tortoise in the Galapagos Islands off Ecuador through genetic testing.
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| Ireland's IRA does not control Sinn Fein: Gerry Adams Posted: 21 Oct 2015 04:56 PM PDT  Irish political party Sinn Fein is not run by its former paramilitary wing the Irish Republican Army despite allegations the terrorist group was still operating in secret, party leader Gerry Adams said on Wednesday. "No one can control Sinn Fein but the Sinn Fein membership," said party leader Gerry Adams in a televised interview on Wednesday evening. "There is a suggestion Sinn Fein is controlled by some outside body or group.
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| 20 shot dead by suspected Islamists in NE Nigeria: locals Posted: 21 Oct 2015 04:52 PM PDT  Twenty people were shot dead by suspected Boko Haram gunmen Wednesday on a road outside a village in Nigeria's northeast Borno state, local sources said. A large group of Boko Haram gunmen fleeing a military offensive on their camp in Nganzai district opened fire on four cars just outside Jingalta village, 70 kilometres (45 miles) north of Maiduguri, killing all 20 passengers inside, a vigilante and a villager said. "We received information of an attack by Boko Haram gunmen on four cars near Jingalta village where they shot dead all 20 occupants of the vehicles before setting the cars ablaze," Babakura Kolo, a member of a local vigilante group assisting the military in fighting the Islamist sect in Maiduguri, told AFP.
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| White House says Congress must act to help Puerto Rico Posted: 21 Oct 2015 04:49 PM PDT WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration is calling on Congress to provide Puerto Rico with the support it needs to emerge from a debt crisis. |
| Canada elects record number of aboriginals to Parliament Posted: 21 Oct 2015 04:39 PM PDT  TORONTO (AP) — Justin Trudeau was not the only winner in Canada's election this week: The country's aboriginal community saw a record 10 indigenous members elected to Parliament — up from seven in 2011 — in a victory for a community that said it was neglected throughout nearly a decade of Conservative rule.
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| Teen recounts deadly NY church beating Posted: 21 Oct 2015 04:34 PM PDT  A 17-year-old boy testified Wednesday of being punched and whipped with a cord during a deadly assault in a US church carried out by his family and congregants. The vicious October 11 beating at the "Word of Life Christian Church" left Christopher's 19-year-old brother Lucas dead and has plunged the small town of New Hartford, New York into mourning. The boys' parents, Bruce and Deborah Leonard -- aged 65 and 59 -- have been charged with manslaughter.
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| Firms question how carbon levy will fund California rail project Posted: 21 Oct 2015 04:33 PM PDT  By Robin Respaut and Rory Carroll SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Private firms looking to build California's $68 billion high-speed train system have concerns about the state's ability to finance some of the project's cost through an untested 'cap-and-trade' carbon trading levy. The doubts, mentioned in correspondence to the state and reviewed by Reuters through a public records request, are not likely to stall financing for the United States' largest infrastructure project, but indicate a tentativeness among firms to use the money as a stand-alone money-generating tool. The California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) expects to raise $500 million per year for the rail line from the cap-and-trade scheme, essentially funds paid by companies to offset carbon emissions.
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| Top Asian News at 11:30 p.m. GMT Posted: 21 Oct 2015 04:32 PM PDT LONDON (AP) — Britain will be China's "partner of choice" in the West, Prime Minister David Cameron declared Wednesday, as China demonstrated its commitment by putting down a 6 billion-pound ($9.3 billion) stake in the U.K.'s first nuclear power plant since the 1980s. Chinese President Xi Jinping signed the nuclear agreement on the second day of a four-day visit that has seen the two countries agree more than 30 billion pounds ($46 billion) in business deals. |
| UN chief 'not optimistic' about Israeli-Palestinian crisis Posted: 21 Oct 2015 04:31 PM PDT  UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the Security Council on Wednesday that he was "not optimistic" following his talks with Israeli and Palestinian leaders to urge them to defuse tensions, diplomats said. The UN chief traveled to the region on Tuesday to urge the Israelis and Palestinians to pull back from a "dangerous escalation" that could lead to a full-scale Palestinian uprising. After meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas, Ban delivered a sobering assessment of the prospects, according to diplomats at the meeting.
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| British man and wife killed at home on island of Tobago Posted: 21 Oct 2015 04:21 PM PDT PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad (AP) — Police are investigating the slaying of a British man and his wife who were found hacked to death in their home on the Caribbean island of Tobago. |
| Ex-Israeli PM sued over flotilla raid that killed American Posted: 21 Oct 2015 04:18 PM PDT  LOS ANGELES (AP) — Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak is being sued in the U.S. over his nation's deadly raid of six Turkish boats trying to break Israel's blockade of Gaza in 2010, an event that still affects relations between Turkey and Israel.
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| U.S., allies demand UN action after Iran missile test Posted: 21 Oct 2015 04:18 PM PDT  By Michelle Nichols and Louis Charbonneau UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The United States, Britain, France and Germany called on Wednesday for the United Nations Security Council's Iran sanctions committee to take action over a missile test by Tehran that they said violated a U.N. ban. In a letter containing details on the launch, they said the ballistic missile was "inherently capable of delivering a nuclear weapon." The letter, seen by Reuters, was sent to the committee after the United States raised the issue in the 15-member Security Council. "We trust that this information will assist the Committee in its responsibility to examine and take appropriate action in response to violations of U.N. Security Council resolutions," they wrote.
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| Haiti officials say they'll keep promises of peaceful vote Posted: 21 Oct 2015 04:13 PM PDT  PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — About a dozen top Haitian officials appeared on state television Wednesday in an effort to reassure anxious voters that they will keep their promises of organized, fair and peaceful elections this weekend.
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| The Latest: UN chief 'pessimistic' on Israel-Palestinians Posted: 21 Oct 2015 04:09 PM PDT  JERUSALEM (AP) — The latest developments in a wave of Israeli-Palestinian violence (all times local).
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| Pilot killed after US F-18 jet crashes in England Posted: 21 Oct 2015 04:06 PM PDT  LONDON (AP) — A U.S. Marine fighter pilot was killed Wednesday when his F-18 crashed after taking off from a British air base in eastern England, U.S. and British officials said.
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| Israeli shot dead by guard who mistook him for terrorist: police Posted: 21 Oct 2015 04:05 PM PDT  A private security guard accidentally shot dead an Israeli man in Jerusalem late Wednesday after mistaking him for a "terrorist", a police spokesman said. Violent protests have also erupted in east Jerusalem, the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
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| US Air Force test-launches Minuteman missile from California Posted: 21 Oct 2015 04:01 PM PDT  VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, California (AP) — The Air Force says an unarmed Minuteman 3 missile has been launched from California's central coast in the latest test of the intercontinental system.
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| Mob lynches two brothers in Mexico Posted: 21 Oct 2015 03:57 PM PDT  Mexico's National Human Rights Commission condemned on Wednesday the lynching of two brothers who were working as pollsters when a mob killed them and burned them while others took pictures. The governmental organization demanded "justice for the victims and their families through a serious and professional investigation" that leads to the arrests of those responsible for the attack on Monday in Ajalpan, a town in central Puebla state. People revolted," Ajalpan Mayor Gustavo Lara told Milenio television.
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| Scientists identify new Galapagos giant tortoise species Posted: 21 Oct 2015 03:46 PM PDT  A team of Ecuadoran and international scientists said Wednesday they have identified a new giant tortoise species on the Galapagos Islands. There are only a few hundred members of the new species, Ecuador's environment ministry said in a statement. Experts had long believed that the two giant tortoise populations on the Santa Cruz island were of the same species, but genetic tests have shown that those living on the eastern side of the island are different, the statement read.
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| Cuba launches initiative to protect sharks Posted: 21 Oct 2015 03:40 PM PDT  By Daniel Trotta HAVANA (Reuters) - Cuba on Wednesday launched an initiative to protect sharks in some of the most pristine habitat for the predators whose populations have been in steep decline. The action plan, reached through two years of collaborative research with the New York-based Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), will impose size and capture limits on fishermen, set aside protected areas and create closed seasons for shark-fishing, officials said. The Cuban government has recognized its special place in the world of sharks as scientists believe nearly 100 of the world's 500 shark species swim in Cuban waters, sustained by a relatively healthy coral reefs, the EDF says.
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| Madrid and PSG draw in Champions League; City wins late Posted: 21 Oct 2015 03:38 PM PDT  MADRID (AP) — Cristiano Ronaldo and Zlatan Ibrahimovic struggled as Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid played to a lackluster 0-0 draw in the Champions League on Wednesday, while Manchester City found a way to earn a late 2-1 victory in a thrilling finish against Sevilla.
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| Former telescope to be taken from sacred Hawaii mountain Posted: 21 Oct 2015 03:37 PM PDT HONOLULU (AP) — The University of Hawaii announced Wednesday that a British-built observatory will be taken from Mauna Kea — a move that fulfills the governor's request to remove 25 percent of telescopes from the mountain considered sacred by many Native Hawaiians. |
| US border inspector kills knife-wielding Mexican man Posted: 21 Oct 2015 03:34 PM PDT  SAN DIEGO (AP) — A U.S. border inspector fatally shot a knife-wielding Mexican man at a California crossing on Wednesday, and an agency official quickly defended his actions.
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| De Bruyne scores late winner, Man City beats Sevilla 2-1 Posted: 21 Oct 2015 03:21 PM PDT  MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Kevin De Bruyne scored an injury-time winner for Manchester City in a 2-1 victory over Sevilla in the Champions League on Wednesday, delivering another reminder why the English club broke its transfer record to sign him last summer.
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| FIFA executive lineup of 2010 scores highly for bad behavior Posted: 21 Oct 2015 03:17 PM PDT GENEVA (AP) — In the history of soccer lineups, the 24-man FIFA executive committee of 2010 ranks among the all-time worst for bad behavior. |
| Study shows value of knee replacement surgery, other options Posted: 21 Oct 2015 03:15 PM PDT  People with knees worn out by arthritis will get more pain relief from joint replacement surgery, but it has more risks and there's a good chance that less drastic approaches also would help. That's the bottom line from the first study to strictly test other treatments against knee replacement, an operation done hundreds of thousands of times a year in the U.S.
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| 6-month-old among five family members found dead in France Posted: 21 Oct 2015 03:13 PM PDT  Three children and their parents have been found dead at their home near the northern French city of Lille, a local prosecutor said late Wednesday. The bodies of a six-month-old boy, his four-year-old brother and 10-year-old sister along with their mother, 40, were found in their beds at the two-storey home in a residential neighbourhood, about seven kilometres (five miles) west of Lille. The father, 42, had hanged himself and left a note, dated October 16, explaining his actions, local prosecutor Frederic Fevre told AFP.
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| 2016 Copa could move forward after marketing deals end Posted: 21 Oct 2015 03:10 PM PDT MIAMI BEACH, Fla. (AP) — The proposed Copa America Centenario in the United States could get back on track after soccer's governing bodies for both South America and for North and Central America and the Caribbean announced they have ended their relationships with the marketing company Datisa. |
| Pumas' Sanchez trying to stay calm before RWC semifinal Posted: 21 Oct 2015 03:03 PM PDT  BAGSHOT, England (AP) — It's certain that Australia will concede penalties to Argentina within goalkicking range in their Rugby World Cup semifinal at Twickenham on Sunday.
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| IMF presses Nigeria to devalue naira currency Posted: 21 Oct 2015 03:03 PM PDT  LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) — The IMF is pressing Nigeria to further devalue its naira currency amid uncertainty over the political and economic outlook for Africa's biggest oil producer and economy.
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| Tropical storm Patricia churns toward Mexico's Pacific coast Posted: 21 Oct 2015 03:03 PM PDT Tropical storm Patricia strengthened off Mexico's Pacific coast on Wednesday, as it churns toward two major cargo ports and is projected to hit the coast by Friday, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said on Wednesday. Shipping hubs Manzanillo and Lazaro Cardenas are both within a hurricane watch area set by the NHC, and the storm is forecast to become a hurricane by Thursday night. Patricia is located about 265 miles (426 km) south of the beach resort of Acapulco. |
| Martial scores to rescue 1-1 draw for United at CSKA Posted: 21 Oct 2015 03:02 PM PDT  KHIMKI, Russia (AP) — Anthony Martial gave away an early penalty and then scored the equalizer as Manchester United came back to draw 1-1 with CSKA Moscow in the Champions League on Wednesday.
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| Tropical Storm Patricia prompts hurricane warning for Mexico Posted: 21 Oct 2015 03:02 PM PDT MEXICO CITY (AP) — Tropical Storm Patricia picked up strength off southern Mexico on Wednesday, prompting officials to issue a hurricane warning for parts of the country's Pacific coast. |
