| Exclusive: Russian tankers defy EU ban to smuggle jet fuel to Syria - sources Posted: 22 Nov 2016 10:44 AM PST  By Guy Faulconbridge and Jonathan Saul LONDON (Reuters) - Russian tankers have smuggled jet fuel to Syria through EU waters, bolstering military supplies to a war-torn country where Moscow is carrying out air strikes in support of the government, according to sources with knowledge of the matter. At least two Russian-flagged ships made deliveries - which contravene EU sanctions - via Cyprus, an intelligence source with a European Union government told Reuters. A separate shipping source familiar with the movements of the Russian-flagged vessels said the ships visited Cypriot and Greek ports before delivering fuel to Syria.
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| Pentagon says air strike killed 'senior al Qaeda leader' in Syria Posted: 22 Nov 2016 11:30 AM PST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An air strike carried out by the United States last week killed Abu Afghan Al-Masri, a "senior al Qaeda leader," near Sarmada, Syria, on Nov. 18, Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said on Tuesday. Cook, speaking during a press briefing, told reporters that Al-Masri, an Egyptian, originally joined al Qaeda in Afghanistan and later moved to it's Syrian affiliate. "He had ties to terrorist groups operating throughout Southwest Asia including groups responsible for attacking U.S. and coalition forces in Afghanistan and those plotting to attack the West," Cook said. ... |
| Civilian victims of mortar, sniper fire pour into Mosul clinic Posted: 22 Nov 2016 03:26 PM PST  By John Davison KOKJALI, Iraq (Reuters) - Iraqi military medics rushed a man whose mouth had been blown apart by mortar shrapnel into their temporary field clinic on the eastern edges of Mosul. "And two dead." All the victims are from areas closer to the center of Mosul and which Iraqi forces recaptured from Islamic State two weeks ago - but which they have sometimes struggled to secure as civilians remain within the range of the jihadists' mortar and sniper fire. Black armored vehicles sped into the clinic run by the elite Counter Terrorism Service (CTS) throughout the morning, ferrying in the casualties - an elderly man shot through the knee, another with a leg wound, a girl hit in the chest.
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| No special favors for Britain, EU lawmakers tell Brexit chief Posted: 22 Nov 2016 10:13 AM PST  By Alissa de Carbonnel STRASBOURG (Reuters) - European Parliament leaders told London's Brexit negotiator on Tuesday that Britain should expect to be shut out of cooperation in areas it values once it leaves the European Union. David Davis met Guy Verhofstadt, the EU legislature's lead Brexit negotiator, and Manfred Weber, a conservative ally of German Chancellor Angela Merkel who leads the biggest bloc in the parliament The European Parliament must approve Britain's divorce deal.
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| Colombia, FARC rebels to sign new peace deal on Thursday Posted: 22 Nov 2016 04:39 PM PST  A new peace accord between Colombia's government and Marxist FARC rebels will be signed on Thursday and sent to Congress for approval, President Juan Manuel Santos said on Tuesday, bringing a formal end to the 52-year civil war ever closer. The revised document will be signed in Bogota between FARC leader Rodrigo Londono and Santos, who won the Nobel Peace Prize last month for his efforts to end the conflict with the insurgent group. The government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) have been in talks in Havana, Cuba for the last four years, hammering out a deal to end a conflict that has killed more than 220,000 and displaced millions in the Andean country.
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| New Zealand foreign minister discusses South China Sea with 'charming' Duterte Posted: 22 Nov 2016 04:49 PM PST  New Zealand's foreign minister Murray McCully said he discussed the disputed South China Sea with a "charming" Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte during an informal meeting. McCully said the pair had a wide ranging discussion late on Tuesday but declined to comment on whether Duterte's controversial drugs crackdown was discussed.
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| U.N. envoy fears 'brutal' Aleppo assault before Trump takes office Posted: 22 Nov 2016 05:29 PM PST  By Andrea Shalal BERLIN (Reuters) - The U.N. Special Envoy for Syria on Tuesday said he was worried that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad could launch a new offensive to crush eastern Aleppo before U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is inaugurated on Jan. 20. Staffan De Mistura did not explain why he thought Syria might make such a move, but European diplomats have said Assad may feel emboldened by Trump's vow to build closer ties with Russia, and the current U.S. government is unlikely to strike back so close to leaving office.
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| Czech free-climber scales Yosemite rock wall in record time Posted: 22 Nov 2016 05:04 PM PST  FRESNO, Calif. (AP) — Gripping tiny slices of sheer rock and hoisting himself up 3,000 feet with only his strength, Adam Ondra quietly inched his way up one of the world's most challenging rock walls and into the record books, a spokesman for the climber said Tuesday.
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| Manchester United, Southampton eye Europa League progress Posted: 22 Nov 2016 04:48 PM PST  Europa League nights are a distraction for some, given far lower prize money than the Champions League, but a means of staying in touch for others such as Manchester United, who are seeking to reach the last 32 on Thursday. United are one of five former European champions playing in what, compared with the Champions League, they view as a bridesmaid's competition. A fifth-place finish in the English Premier League kept them away from the European game's top table for a second straight year -- last season bringing an ignominious exit to, of all teams, five-times European champions Liverpool.
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| Tottenham Hotspurs not yet up to European demands, admits Pochettino Posted: 22 Nov 2016 04:38 PM PST  Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino admitted his side have struggled to cope with the twin demands of playing in the Premier League and in Europe after their shock exit from the Champions League on Tuesday. Spurs slumped to their third defeat in five games in Europe's elite club competition when they went down 2-1 to Monaco at the Stade Louis II to end their hopes of reaching the last 16 with a group game still to play. The north London club needed a point to stay in the hunt and saw Harry Kane's 52nd-minute penalty bring them level just four minutes after Djibril Sidibe had put Monaco ahead.
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| The Latest: Climber proud another broke his Yosemite record Posted: 22 Nov 2016 04:35 PM PST  FRESNO, Calif. (AP) — The Latest on a Czech climber scaling Yosemite's El Capitan (all times local):
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| Late-season storm Otto becomes hurricane; 3 dead in Panama Posted: 22 Nov 2016 04:34 PM PST  PANAMA CITY (AP) — Late-season storm Otto strengthened into a hurricane Tuesday as civil defense officials reported three deaths in Panama amid heavy rain and Costa Rica ordered the evacuation of 4,000 people from its Caribbean coast.
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| The Latest: Hurricane Otto crawls westward over Caribbean Posted: 22 Nov 2016 04:21 PM PST  The Latest on tropical weather in the Caribbean (all times local):
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| Ranieri gears up for another Leicester 'fairytale' Posted: 22 Nov 2016 04:18 PM PST  Leicester City manager Claudio Ranieri looked forward to "another fairytale" after the 5,000-1 Premier League champions booked their place in the knockout phase of the Champions League. Leicester are toiling in the Premier League, sitting two points above the relegation zone, but Tuesday's 2-1 win over Club Brugge took them into the Champions League last 16 with a game to spare. Asked which of Europe's glamour clubs he would like to face in the next round, a smiling Ranieri replied: "I don't know.
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| Civilians flee as Syria regime advances in rebel Aleppo Posted: 22 Nov 2016 04:10 PM PST  Syrian pro-government forces pushed deeper into rebel-held eastern Aleppo on Tuesday, forcing civilians to flee as the regime pressed an assault to recapture the entire city. Recapturing east Aleppo would be the government's biggest victory yet in Syria's five-year conflict and deal a potentially decisive blow to the opposition. Military aircraft dropped leaflets over east Aleppo, urging rebels to distribute food to civilians, leave the area and allow residents to do so too.
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| Top Asian News 12:10 a.m. GMT Posted: 22 Nov 2016 04:10 PM PST TOKYO (AP) — At first, it was 2011 all over again. "It really came back. And it was so awful. The sways to the side were huge," Kazuhiro Onuki said after northeastern Japan was jolted Tuesday by a magnitude-7.4 earthquake, the strongest since a devastating quake and tsunami five years ago. "But nothing fell from the shelves," Onuki, 68, said in a phone interview, his voice calm and quiet. Coastal residents returned home from higher ground, and fishing boats to port, after tsunami warnings were lifted along Japan's Pacific coast. The earthquake gave Tokyo — 240 kilometers (150 miles) away — a good shake, but was much less powerful than the magnitude-9.0 quake in 2011, and only moderate tsunami waves reached shore. |
| Australian diplomats set to meet teen drug suspect in Bali Posted: 22 Nov 2016 04:09 PM PST CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australian diplomats will meet Wednesday with an Australian teenager detained on suspicion of drug possession during end-of-school celebrations on the Indonesian resort island of Bali, Australia's foreign minister said. |
| Charity airs 'moral outrage' over Aleppo child deaths Posted: 22 Nov 2016 04:06 PM PST  Save the Children has hit out at the "moral outrage" of the mounting deaths and suffering of children in the battleground Syrian city of Aleppo, in a statement released Wednesday. The charity said medics across northwest Syria were looking to fortify hospitals after a wave of attacks in rebel-held east Aleppo left facilities struggling to care for injured children. Regime forces have been waging a ferocious assault on east Aleppo since November 15, with the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights saying more than 140 civilians have been killed, 19 of them children.
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| For Standing Rock Sioux, new water system may reduce oil leak risk Posted: 22 Nov 2016 03:55 PM PST  As of early next year, however, the Native American tribe will be gathering their water 70 miles (113 km) downstream of the oil pipeline's location, thanks to a long-awaited water treatment plant. The reservation, which spans North and South Dakota, currently gets water 20 miles away from the pipeline's planned location. While the scope of contamination of a future oil leak is difficult to predict, the distance from the pipeline to the new intake could reduce widespread contamination risks, regulators and environmental analysts said.
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| 12-goal game upstages Madrid, Juventus in Champions League Posted: 22 Nov 2016 03:52 PM PST  GENEVA (AP) — The first 12-goal game in 25 Champions League seasons took the spotlight from Real Madrid and Juventus advancing to the Round of 16 on Tuesday.
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| Colombia, FARC to sign new peace accord Thursday: official Posted: 22 Nov 2016 03:48 PM PST  Colombia's government and FARC guerrillas will sign a new peace accord in Bogota Thursday, after a previous agreement to end the country's half-century of conflict was rejected in a referendum, both parties said. The new accord will be submitted to Congress for approval, rather than put to another referendum. "The government and FARC delegations have agreed to sign the final agreement to end the conflict and build a stable and lasting peace," negotiators from both sides said in a statement Tuesday.
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| Colombia, FARC plan to sign peace deal over Uribe objections Posted: 22 Nov 2016 03:41 PM PST  BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Colombia's government and leftist rebels say they will sign a modified peace agreement Thursday despite strong resistance from former President Alvaro Uribe.
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| Benin authorities seize 54 kg of cocaine from Brazil Posted: 22 Nov 2016 03:21 PM PST Benin security forces seized 54 kilograms of cocaine from a container that had arrived at its main port of Cotonou from Brazil, the public prosecutor said on Tuesday. "There was a sack containing 48 pellets of a suspect product," which was seized on Monday, Lawani Badirou told a news conference. It was the second drug bust in Benin in under a month. |
| For 2nd day, Haiti police scatter rock-throwing protesters Posted: 22 Nov 2016 03:19 PM PST  PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — For a second straight day, partisans of a Haitian political faction threw rocks at police and burned tires Tuesday to demand "fair" election results, which they insisted would put their candidate in the presidency.
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| Monaco send Tottenham Hotspur crashing out of Champions League Posted: 22 Nov 2016 03:16 PM PST  Harry Kane scored his first Champions League goal but could not prevent Tottenham Hotspur from crashing out of the competition with a 2-1 defeat in Monaco on Tuesday. Spurs needed at least a point to keep their hopes of reaching the last 16 alive and Kane brought them level with a penalty shortly after Djibril Sidibe had put Monaco in front at the Stade Louis II.
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| Porto wastes chance to advance in 0-0 draw with Copenhagen Posted: 22 Nov 2016 03:12 PM PST  COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — FC Porto missed a chance to guarantee its place in the knockout stages of the Champions League after being held to a 0-0 draw in Group G by FC Copenhagen on Tuesday.
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| Dortmund beats Legia 8-4 to break Champions League record Posted: 22 Nov 2016 03:08 PM PST  DORTMUND, Germany (AP) — Borussia Dortmund beat Legia Warsaw in a pulsating 8-4 victory on Tuesday that broke the record for goals scored in a Champions League match.
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| Real Madrid advances after beating Sporting 2-1 Posted: 22 Nov 2016 03:00 PM PST  LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Defending champion Real Madrid advanced from the group stage of the Champions League for the 20th straight time after beating 10-man Sporting Lisbon 2-1 on Tuesday.
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| EU plan aims to restrict trade in gold used to fund conflict Posted: 22 Nov 2016 02:51 PM PST BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union officials have announced a plan to restrict the trade of gold and other minerals used to finance armed conflicts. |
| Trump reverses threat to prosecute Clinton Posted: 22 Nov 2016 02:48 PM PST  During a meeting with New York Times editorial staff, Trump appeared to reverse the "lock-her-up" campaign rhetoric that had called his respect for the rule of law into question. "I don't want to hurt the Clintons, I really don't," Trump was quoted as saying by the paper's staff. After an FBI investigation into Clinton's use of a private email server while secretary of state, the Department of Justice recommended no charges be levelled at the Democratic candidate.
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| Wait worth it as Leverkusen advances in Champions League Posted: 22 Nov 2016 02:40 PM PST  MOSCOW (AP) — Bayer Leverkusen qualified for the Champions League knockout stages after a 1-1 draw away to CSKA Moscow on Tuesday, but the German club had a nervous wait before knowing it had advanced.
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| Eastern Kentucky beats Idaho State 91-82 in overtime Posted: 22 Nov 2016 02:32 PM PST CANCUN, Mexico (AP) — Nick Mayo scored 21 points, including five in overtime, and Eastern Kentucky defeated Idaho State 91-82 at the Cancun Challenge on Tuesday. |
| Syrian group: Rebels preventing refugees from fleeing Aleppo Posted: 22 Nov 2016 02:30 PM PST  BEIRUT (AP) — A Syrian monitoring group alleged Tuesday that rebels are preventing dozens of families from fleeing eastern Aleppo as Russian-backed government forces intensify their bombardment of the besieged quarter.
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| Monaco beats Tottenham 2-1 to seal first place in CL group E Posted: 22 Nov 2016 02:22 PM PST  MONACO (AP) — Monaco sealed first place in Group E of the Champions League with a 2-1 win over Tottenham in a thrilling display of attacking football on Tuesday.
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| Leicester beats Brugge 2-1, advances in Champions League Posted: 22 Nov 2016 02:21 PM PST  LEICESTER, England (AP) — Champions League newcomer Leicester clinched its place in the knockout stages as guaranteed group winner by beating Club Brugge 2-1, with early goals by Shinji Okazaki and Riyad Mahrez doing the damage on Tuesday.
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| Hurricane Otto heads toward Central America, kills 3 Posted: 22 Nov 2016 02:20 PM PST  Tropical Storm Otto strengthened into a hurricane Tuesday in the Caribbean as it lurched toward Central America, causing three deaths in Panama and prompting coastal evacuations in Costa Rica and Nicaragua. Otto became the seventh hurricane of the 2016 Atlantic season as it moved westward packing maximum sustained winds of 75 miles (120 kilometers) per hour, the US-based National Hurricane Center said. The hurricane is expected to pick up strength and speed as it approaches the coasts of Costa Rica and Nicaragua before making landfall, the NHC said in a 2100 GMT bulletin.
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| Juventus reaches knockout round with 3-1 win at Sevilla Posted: 22 Nov 2016 02:20 PM PST  SEVILLE, Spain (AP) — Leonardo Bonucci and Mario Mandzukic scored late to give Juventus a 3-1 win at 10-man Sevilla on Tuesday and a spot in the Champions League knockout phase.
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| Texans focused on moving on after tough loss to Oakland Posted: 22 Nov 2016 02:15 PM PST  HOUSTON (AP) — The Houston Texans dealt with a fan's hand-held laser pointed at quarterback Brock Osweiler's eyes, questionable placement of the ball on two key plays and a would-be touchdown that was whistled dead in a loss to Oakland on Monday night.
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