Yahoo! News: World News

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• Police kill gunman in Brussels siege linked to Paris attacks
• Russian warplanes leave Syria, raising U.N. hopes for peace talks
• North Korean leader says will soon test nuclear warhead
• Macedonia returns migrants to Greece, Cyprus objects to EU-Turkey deal
• Saudi-led air strikes kill 41 civilians in Yemen: health official
• Deadly fighting spreads in southeast Turkey after Ankara bomb
• Police kill 1 man in Belgian raid linked to Paris attacks
• Birth defect risk 1-in-100 for Zika-infected pregnant women: study
• Power to the people: Venezuela calls holiday to save energy
• Kompany limps off for Man City with another calf injury
• Women with Zika in Tahiti had 1 percent birth defects risk
• Coaching maestro Smith stays with All Blacks
• Morocco says to cut U.N. Western Sahara mission after Ban remarks
• Atletico beats PSV 8-7 on penalties to reach CL quarters
• Injury-hit City into Champions League quarters for 1st time
• Brazil's Rousseff hit by explosive new accusations
• Britain 'not trusted' if it leaves EU: Malta
• Ecuador army plane crash kills all 22 aboard: president
• Melbourne drops vital points in Asian Champions League
• Injuries mar Manchester City's history night
• Argentine navy sinks illegal fishing boat with Chinese flag
• Health experts train local communities to prepare for disasters
• 22 killed when Ecuadorean army plane crashes in jungle
• Assad adviser says Russian forces can return to Syria after withdrawal
• Argentina coast guard sinks Chinese trawler fishing illegally
• Pocock signs contract extension that includes 1-year off
• Dominica reports first case of mosquito-borne Zika virus
• Advisor to Syria peace talks: Women should be at table
• UNHCR to ask world to take in 400,000 Syrians
• France ups Africa anti-terror support after Ivory Coast attack
• Dutch parliament votes to ban weapon exports to Saudi Arabia
• Southern U.S. flooding causes closure of major highway
• Hiding in plain sight, helping hands reach Mexican trafficking victims
• Suspect killed, 4 police wounded in Brussels raid over Paris attacks
• Mind the gap - Uganda, Ethiopia show good laws don't always work in practice
• Congress criticizes EPA, Michigan over Flint water crisis
• Top India court orders protection from trafficking for adopted children
• Academics in Puerto Rico debate future of Spanish language
• Dead suspect in Brussels raid had Kalashnikov rifle: prosecutor

Police kill gunman in Brussels siege linked to Paris attacks Posted: 15 Mar 2016 01:29 PM PDT By Robert-Jan Bartunek, Philip Blenkinsop and Clement Rossignol BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Belgian police killed a gunman after several officers were wounded on Tuesday in a raid on a Brussels apartment linked to investigating November's Islamist attacks in Paris, public broadcaster RTBF said. Belgium's federal prosecutor, leading the investigation, said one or more suspects barricaded themselves in an apartment after firing through a door at police who arrived to search it. DH newspaper said one suspect was shot dead after being spotted from a police helicopter in a nearby garden.

Russian warplanes leave Syria, raising U.N. hopes for peace talks Posted: 15 Mar 2016 01:21 PM PDT By Dmitry Solovyov, Tom Perry and Suleiman Al-Khalidi MOSCOW/BEIRUT/GENEVA (Reuters) - Russian warplanes flew home from Syria on Tuesday as Moscow started to withdraw forces that have tipped the war President Bashar al-Assad's way, and the U.N. envoy said he hoped the move would help peace talks in Geneva. As the first aircraft touched down in Russia, U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura called President Vladimir Putin's surprise move a "significant development" toward resolving a conflict which this week passes its fifth anniversary.

North Korean leader says will soon test nuclear warhead Posted: 15 Mar 2016 01:59 PM PDT By Jack Kim and James Pearson SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his country would soon test a nuclear warhead and ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads, North Korea's KCNA news agency reported on Tuesday, in what would be a direct violation of U.N. resolutions that have the backing of Pyongyang's chief ally, China. Kim made the comments as he supervised what KCNA said was a successful simulated test of atmospheric re-entry of a ballistic missile that measured the "thermodynamic structural stability of newly developed heat-resisting materials".

Macedonia returns migrants to Greece, Cyprus objects to EU-Turkey deal Posted: 15 Mar 2016 02:47 PM PDT By Ognen Teofilovski and Michele Kambas IDOMENI, Greece/NICOSIA (Reuters) - Macedonia trucked about 1,500 migrants and refugees back to Greece after they forced their way across the border on Monday, as European nations continued to pass the buck in a migration crisis that risks tearing the European Union apart. Cyprus, an EU member, vowed to block efforts to speed up Ankara's EU accession talks unless Turkey meets its obligations to recognize its nationhood. European Council President Donald Tusk, who will chair a summit of EU leaders on Thursday and one with Turkey on Friday, flew on to Ankara to discuss the pact after talks with Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades.

Saudi-led air strikes kill 41 civilians in Yemen: health official Posted: 15 Mar 2016 12:34 PM PDT By Mohammed Ghobari RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi-led air strikes killed 41 civilians and wounded 75 others on Tuesday in Yemen's northwestern province of Haja, a senior provincial health official said, a region largely controlled by the Iran-allied Houthi militia. Brigadier General Ahmed al-Asseri, spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition that intervened in Yemen's civil war, said it was looking into reports of the attack. The coalition entered the conflict a year ago to stop Houthi forces and others loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh from seizing the entire country, and has fought to restore the government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.

Deadly fighting spreads in southeast Turkey after Ankara bomb Posted: 15 Mar 2016 08:29 AM PDT By Seyhmus Cakan DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (Reuters) - Fighting between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants spread on Tuesday, with tanks, helicopters and armored cars deployed after a suicide bombing that killed 37 people in the capital Ankara. The deadliest violence took place in Diyarbakir, the largest city in mainly Kurdish southeastern Turkey, where Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) fighters blocked roads and clashed with security forces overnight as a police helicopter flew overhead, witnesses said. One police officer and three militants were killed in Diyarbakir and a second police officer was killed in the town of Nusaybin, where the PKK launched an attack, security sources said.

Police kill 1 man in Belgian raid linked to Paris attacks Posted: 15 Mar 2016 04:48 PM PDT BRUSSELS (AP) — Belgian and French police investigating a suspected link with the November attacks in Paris stormed a Brussels house Tuesday after being fired upon, and killed a suspect armed with a Kalashnikov assault rifle, authorities said.

Birth defect risk 1-in-100 for Zika-infected pregnant women: study Posted: 15 Mar 2016 04:48 PM PDT A woman infected by the Zika virus during the first three months of pregnancy faces a one-in-100 chance her child will suffer severe brain damage, according to a study released Wednesday. Zika increases the risk of microcephaly -- an otherwise rare condition that results in an abnormally small head -- by fifty-fold, the researchers calculated. "The first trimester is the most critical," lead author Simon Cauchemez, a scientist at the Institut Pasteur in Paris, told AFP.

Power to the people: Venezuela calls holiday to save energy Posted: 15 Mar 2016 04:41 PM PDT CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has a new strategy to stave off a major power crisis: a weeklong holiday for all workers.

Kompany limps off for Man City with another calf injury Posted: 15 Mar 2016 04:34 PM PDT MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany's injury problems resurfaced on Tuesday when he limped off just five minutes into the team's Champions League match against Dynamo Kiev.

Women with Zika in Tahiti had 1 percent birth defects risk Posted: 15 Mar 2016 04:31 PM PDT LONDON (AP) — Women who got pregnant during a Zika outbreak in Tahiti two years ago had about a 1 percent chance of having a baby with an abnormally small head, according to a new study published Tuesday. It's a surprisingly low risk that experts say might not match the threat of the epidemic now spreading explosively in the Americas.

Coaching maestro Smith stays with All Blacks Posted: 15 Mar 2016 04:28 PM PDT New Zealand Rugby (NZR) said Wednesday that All Blacks assistant coach Wayne Smith had signed a two-year contract extension keeping him with the world champions until after the 2017 British and Irish Lions tour. Smith took a break after New Zealand won the World Cup in November but said head coach Steve Hansen had persuaded him to stay on as the All Blacks rebuild without superstars such as Richie McCaw and Dan Carter. It's going to be a big year and I'm looking forward to it," said Smith, whose name was briefly linked to vacant roles with the England national side and Harlequins as he pondered his future.

Morocco says to cut U.N. Western Sahara mission after Ban remarks Posted: 15 Mar 2016 04:26 PM PDT By Aziz El Yaakoubi RABAT (Reuters) - Morocco's government said on Tuesday it would cut staff at the United Nations' Western Sahara mission and threatened to pull out of United Nations peacekeeping missions after "unacceptable" comments by U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon about the disputed region. The statement came on Tuesday after Ban met with Morocco's foreign minister to express his anger over remarks by the Moroccan government and a demonstration in Rabat which he said was a personal attack following his Western Sahara comments.

Atletico beats PSV 8-7 on penalties to reach CL quarters Posted: 15 Mar 2016 04:23 PM PDT MADRID (AP) — Atletico Madrid beat PSV Eindhoven 8-7 in a penalty shootout on Tuesday to reach the quarterfinals of the Champions League for the third straight season.

Injury-hit City into Champions League quarters for 1st time Posted: 15 Mar 2016 04:21 PM PDT MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Manchester City's players trudged off the field. Many fans left early. The final whistle was greeted with only a smattering of cheers.

Brazil's Rousseff hit by explosive new accusations Posted: 15 Mar 2016 04:11 PM PDT Brasília (AFP) - Brazil's political drama took several new twists Tuesday as a senator accused President Dilma Rousseff of offering hush money to contain a corruption scandal and her predecessor considered a return to government to help save their careers. Prosecutors said a senator charged in a huge graft investigation centered on state oil company Petrobras had accused Rousseff of sending a powerful cabinet minister to try to buy his silence. The senator, Delcidio Amaral of the ruling Workers' Party (PT), told investigators in statements given as part of a plea bargain that Education Minister Aloizio Mercadante, Rousseff's former chief of staff, contacted him via an aide to urge him not to testify.

Britain 'not trusted' if it leaves EU: Malta Posted: 15 Mar 2016 04:08 PM PDT London (AFP) - "Acrimony and resentment" would follow if Britain voted to leave the European Union in a June referendum, Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said in London on Tuesday. The UK would be respected but not trusted," Muscat said. Britain is set to vote on whether to remain in the 28-member bloc on June 23, and Malta is set to take over the EU presidency shortly afterwards for the first half of 2017.

Ecuador army plane crash kills all 22 aboard: president Posted: 15 Mar 2016 04:05 PM PDT Quito (AFP) - An Ecuadoran army plane crashed in the Amazon rainforest Tuesday, killing all 22 people on board, President Rafael Correa said.

Melbourne drops vital points in Asian Champions League Posted: 15 Mar 2016 04:02 PM PDT SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Melbourne Victory's chances of reaching the knockout stage of the Asian Champions League for the first time were damaged Tuesday after being held to a 0-0 draw by Suwon Bluewings.

Injuries mar Manchester City's history night Posted: 15 Mar 2016 03:50 PM PDT Injuries to centre-backs Vincent Kompany and Nicolas Otamendi overshadowed proceedings as Manchester City reached the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time after drawing 0-0 with Dynamo Kiev on Tuesday. Leading 3-1 from last month's away leg, Manuel Pellegrini's side completed the job in forgettable fashion, with Jesus Navas's shot against the post for City the nearest either side came to breaking the deadlock.

Argentine navy sinks illegal fishing boat with Chinese flag Posted: 15 Mar 2016 03:49 PM PDT BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Argentina's navy says it used gunfire to sink a boat flying the Chinese flag that was fishing illegally in national waters.

Health experts train local communities to prepare for disasters Posted: 15 Mar 2016 03:45 PM PDT By Alisa Tang BANGKOK (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - When natural disasters strike, most public health risks come from sectors such as housing and construction, says Iranian health and disaster expert Ali Ardalan. A shoddy building collapses in an earthquake, people are injured, then hospitals and health professionals respond.

22 killed when Ecuadorean army plane crashes in jungle Posted: 15 Mar 2016 03:43 PM PDT QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — Ecuadorean army paratroopers are among 22 people killed when a military plane crashed in jungle southeast of the capital of Quito.

Assad adviser says Russian forces can return to Syria after withdrawal Posted: 15 Mar 2016 03:41 PM PDT A top adviser to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said on Tuesday Russian forces could return to Syria after withdrawing, and the United States now needed to pressure Turkey and Saudi Arabia to halt supplies to rebels. "If the Russian friends withdraw part of their forces, this does not mean they cannot return," Bouthaina Shaaban said on Lebanon-based al-Mayadeen TV. In a surprise announcement on Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said most Russian forces would be withdrawn from Syria.

Argentina coast guard sinks Chinese trawler fishing illegally Posted: 15 Mar 2016 03:38 PM PDT Argentina's coast guard has sunk a Chinese trawler that was fishing illegally within its territorial waters, the coast guard said on Tuesday, marking a first test for relations between President Mauricio Macri and Beijing. In a high-seas chase, a coast guard vessel on Monday pursued the fishing vessel Lu Yan Yuan Yu 010 toward international waters, firing warning shots across the Chinese boat's bow as it attempted to raise the crew by radio. "On several occasions, the offending ship performed maneuvers designed to force a collision with the coast guard, putting at risk not only its own crew but coast guard personnel, who were then ordered to shoot parts of the vessel," the coast guard said in a statement.

Pocock signs contract extension that includes 1-year off Posted: 15 Mar 2016 03:34 PM PDT CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Wallabies backrower David Pocock has negotiated a three-year contract extension with the Australian Rugby Union that includes a year off in 2017.

Dominica reports first case of mosquito-borne Zika virus Posted: 15 Mar 2016 03:33 PM PDT ROSEAU, Dominica (AP) — Dominica is reporting its first case of the Zika virus that has been rapidly spreading across the hemisphere.

Advisor to Syria peace talks: Women should be at table Posted: 15 Mar 2016 03:31 PM PDT UNITED NATIONS (AP) — An activist who is on the board of women advising the United Nations special envoy for Syria on peace talks said Tuesday that women should be at the table actively taking part in negotiations.

UNHCR to ask world to take in 400,000 Syrians Posted: 15 Mar 2016 03:13 PM PDT The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said Tuesday he will ask countries to step forward and agree to take in another 400,000 Syrian refugees. On his first visit to Washington since being appointed to head the UN refugee effort, Filippo Grandi said the world must do more to end the crisis. "On March 30, I'm going to chair a meeting in Geneva at which I ask the international community to take 10 percent of all the Syrian refugees," he said.

France ups Africa anti-terror support after Ivory Coast attack Posted: 15 Mar 2016 03:09 PM PDT France vowed Tuesday to step up anti-terrorist cooperation in Africa after Al-Qaeda's North African branch said it carried out a deadly weekend attack on an Ivory Coast beach resort. "We must reinforce our cooperation so that the terrorists have no chance" of success, said French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault who arrived in Abidjan earlier Tuesday along with Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve. Also in Abidjan as a mark of solidarity were Benin President Thomas Boni Yayi and Togolese counterpart Faure Gnassingbe, who urged a regional response to terror.

Dutch parliament votes to ban weapon exports to Saudi Arabia Posted: 15 Mar 2016 03:04 PM PDT The Dutch parliament passed a bill on Tuesday calling for the government of the Netherlands to halt weapon exports to Saudi Arabia, citing ongoing violations of humanitarian law in Yemen. The Dutch vote effectively seeks to implement a decision in February by the European Parliament, which called on countries in the European Union to impose an arms embargo against Riyadh. Around 6,000 people have been killed since Saudi-led troops entered the conflict in Yemen last March, almost half of them civilians, according to the United Nations.

Southern U.S. flooding causes closure of major highway Posted: 15 Mar 2016 02:45 PM PDT By Jim Forsyth SAN ANTONIO (Reuters) - Flooding caused by days of heavy rain forced the closure on Tuesday of a section of a major U.S. highway on the Louisiana-Texas border along the rising Sabine River, officials said. At least five people have been killed in storms in Southern U.S. states over the past several days that have caused flooding in places including Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas, forcing thousands of people to flee homes caught in floodwaters.. The Texas Department of Transportation said the east-west highway, Interstate 10, was closed after water spilled over the road. Flooding along the Sabine River that separates Texas and Louisiana has forced the evacuation of hundreds of people from their homes. Texas Governor Greg Abbott late on Monday issued a disaster declaration for 17 eastern and southeastern Texas counties.

Hiding in plain sight, helping hands reach Mexican trafficking victims Posted: 15 Mar 2016 02:43 PM PDT By Alasdair Baverstock NEW YORK (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - After more than two decades of working as a prostitute in Mexico City, Esperanza Escobar found salvation in a most unexpected place. The hair salon, which treated women like Escobar kindly and keeps them coming back with rock-bottom prices, is in fact a front for a charitable operation aimed at rescuing sex workers and giving them the chance at new lives. "In visiting the salon I had gone to for three months, I thought I was going in for a cut and dry," Escobar, 53, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Suspect killed, 4 police wounded in Brussels raid over Paris attacks Posted: 15 Mar 2016 02:43 PM PDT Belgian and French police launched a vast manhunt for more possible suspects late Tuesday after a Kalashnikov-wielding assailant was killed and four officers were wounded during an anti-terror operation in Brussels linked to the November 13 Paris attacks. Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel said operations were continuing after the gun battle in the southern Brussels suburb of Forest, and that the national security council would meet on Wednesday. Michel thanked residents for their "composure" as bursts of gunfire erupted in the streets and dozens of heavily-armed police with balaclavas and sub-machineguns sealed off the area.

Mind the gap - Uganda, Ethiopia show good laws don't always work in practice Posted: 15 Mar 2016 02:43 PM PDT By Paola Totaro WASHINGTON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Uganda's constitution of 1995 is known worldwide for pioneering and gender-sensitive provisions to protect women and their rights. A yawning gap exists between official legal frameworks to protect property rights and their implementation and cultural acceptance on a practical level in Uganda, where some 80 percent of the population holds land under customary tenure without formal recognition, said researcher Francis Birungi. According to Birungi's research project, led by Uganda Community Based Association for Women and Children's Welfare (UCOBAC), land is by far the most productive asset in the country.

Congress criticizes EPA, Michigan over Flint water crisis Posted: 15 Mar 2016 02:37 PM PDT By David Shepardson WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A congressional panel on Tuesday criticized the Environmental Protection Agency and Michigan officials for failing to do more to sound the alarm about high levels of lead in the city of Flint's drinking water. "What happened in Flint can never happen again. It is almost unbelievable how many bad decisions were made," said Representative Jason Chaffetz, a Utah Republican who chairs the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

Top India court orders protection from trafficking for adopted children Posted: 15 Mar 2016 02:36 PM PDT By Suchitra Mohanty NEW DELHI (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - India's top court has ordered the government to draw up strong guidelines for screening and tracking adoptions after a charity appealed for a federal probe into allegations that adopted children were being abused. Parliament passed a law in January aimed at streamlining the adoption of orphaned and abandoned children, but the rules have not yet been framed by the responsible body, the Central Adoption Research Agency, CARA. Children are to be protected against abuse and trafficking," a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Tirath Singh Thakur said on Monday.

Academics in Puerto Rico debate future of Spanish language Posted: 15 Mar 2016 02:34 PM PDT SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — The king and queen of Spain flew to the former colony of Puerto Rico to help launch on Tuesday what is considered the world's most important event involving the Spanish language.

Dead suspect in Brussels raid had Kalashnikov rifle: prosecutor Posted: 15 Mar 2016 02:20 PM PDT Police faced one or more assailants during a major Franco-Belgian anti-terror operation Tuesday in Brussels linked to the Paris attacks and killed a suspect armed with a Kalashnikov assault rifle, the federal prosecutor's office said. There had been speculation that Salah Abdeslam, a key suspect in the November attacks in Paris which left 130 people dead, might have been the target of the operation but the prosecutor's spokesman expressly ruled it out.

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