| China lodges protest after Trump call with Taiwan president Posted: 03 Dec 2016 01:25 PM PST  By Ben Blanchard BEIJING/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - China lodged a diplomatic protest on Saturday after U.S. President-elect Donald Trump spoke by phone with President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan, but blamed the self-ruled island Beijing claims as its own for the "petty" move. The 10-minute telephone call with Taiwan's leadership was the first by a U.S. president-elect or president since President Jimmy Carter switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China in 1979, acknowledging Taiwan as part of "one China".
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| Leftist leaders join thousands to send off Fidel Castro in Cuba Posted: 03 Dec 2016 04:33 PM PST  By Diego Oré SANTIAGO, Cuba (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of Cubans packed into a public square in Santiago de Cuba on Saturday, joining dignitaries to bid farewell to revolutionary leader Fidel Castro in the city where his ashes will be entombed. Cuba's current President Raul Castro was set to commemorate the legacy of a his older brother, a man once feted by Nelson Mandela for helping to end apartheid, but who also helped take the world to the brink of nuclear war during the Cuban missile crisis. On Sunday morning, his ashes will be interred near the remains of Cuba's independence hero Jose Marti in a cemetery in the eastern city, in what is likely to be a solemn ceremony.
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| Brazil mourns Chapecoense crash victims at packed stadium wake Posted: 03 Dec 2016 01:05 PM PST  By Brad Haynes CHAPECO, Brazil (Reuters) - A downpour drenched thousands of mourners in this Brazilian city on Saturday as they grieved over 50 caskets flown overnight to the stadium of the local Chapecoense soccer team, which was all but wiped out in an air crash Monday in Colombia. Instead, they looked on as Air Force troops, after unloading the bodies from cargo aircraft, ferried the caskets to makeshift tents erected on the team's soggy home turf, where victims' families sat in sorrow. President Michel Temer, who flew in from Brazil's capital at dawn to receive the caskets at a Chapeco airfield, bestowed posthumous honors on the deceased athletes.
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| Russia seeks full withdrawal of Aleppo rebels Posted: 03 Dec 2016 01:06 PM PST  By Tom Perry, Isla Binnie and Vladimir Soldatkin BEIRUT/ROME/MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia said on Saturday it was ready for talks with the United States about a withdrawal of all Syrian rebels from eastern Aleppo, where advances by the Russian-backed Syrian army and its allies threaten to deal a crushing blow to the rebellion. In just over a week, the army and allied militias have seized large areas of the opposition-held territory in eastern Aleppo in a fierce campaign that may leave the rebels with no choice but to seek a negotiated passage out of their area. With tens of thousands of civilians still living in the rebels' shrinking, besieged enclave, the U.N. envoy for Syria suggested eastern Aleppo could fall by the end of the year and hoped a way could be found to avoid a "terrible battle".
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| France's Left starts fightback after Hollande bows out of presidential race Posted: 03 Dec 2016 12:57 PM PST  By Elizabeth Pineau and Richard Balmforth PARIS (Reuters) - France's Left on Saturday launched a bid to re-energize supporters disenchanted by Francois Hollande's five years in power and find a candidate to unite the ranks ahead of a presidential election next year where it could face humiliation. Hollande threw the Socialist nomination of a candidate for next spring's presidential election wide open last Thursday when he announced he would not seek a second term in the Elysee. As leftist groups held a rally on Saturday intended to be the start of a fightback after months of disarray, all eyes were on Prime Minister Manuel Valls, widely tipped as favorite to become the Socialists' standard bearer despite having pro-business policies which have angered many in the party.
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| Italy votes in referendum with PM Renzi's future at stake Posted: 03 Dec 2016 05:07 PM PST  By Gavin Jones ROME (Reuters) - Italians vote on Sunday in a referendum on constitutional reform which will decide the political future of Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, who has promised to resign if he loses. Financial markets and Europe's politicians fear victory for the opposition 'No' camp could trigger political instability and renewed turmoil for Italy's battered banks, pushing the euro zone towards a fresh crisis. Polls open at 7 a.m. (1.00 a.m. ET), with about 51 million Italians eligible to vote on Renzi's plan to drastically reduce the role of the upper house Senate and claw back powers from regional authorities.
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| Saunders successfully defends title against Akavov Posted: 03 Dec 2016 05:43 PM PST PAISLEY, Scotland (AP) — Billy Joe Saunders enjoyed a successful first defense of his WBO middleweight title against Artur Akavov on Saturday night, with the British boxer starting slowly but finishing the 12-rounder strongly. |
| Raul Castro: Cuba will ban naming of monuments after Fidel Posted: 03 Dec 2016 05:40 PM PST  SANTIAGO, Cuba (AP) — Cuban President Raul Castro said Saturday that his government will prohibit the naming of streets or public monuments after his brother Fidel in keeping with the former leader's desire to avoid the development of a personality cult.
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| Arsenal's Wenger sees Sanchez making striking impression Posted: 03 Dec 2016 05:31 PM PST  Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger foresees Alexis Sanchez staying in the striking role that brought him a hat-trick in the 5-1 victory over West Ham as long as the Chilean is scoring goals. Pushed further forward this season, Sanchez has now scored seven goals in his last five Premier League games. If it comes off, they want to stay there," said Wenger.
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| Humphries wins World Cup bobsled race, Meyers Taylor crashes Posted: 03 Dec 2016 05:28 PM PST WHISTLER, British Columbia (AP) — Canada's Kaillie Humphries started her World Cup season in the best way possible. |
| Russian security service says killed North Caucasus Islamic State 'emir' Posted: 03 Dec 2016 05:24 PM PST  Russia's FSB security service said Sunday it had killed an "emir" of the Islamic State group in the North Caucasus along with four other militants in a raid in the Dagestan region. The FSB said that Aselderov was involved in 2013 blasts in the southern Russian city of Volgograd which killed 34. It also linked him to twin car blasts in Dagestan in 2012 that killed 14 and injured at least 120.
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| Players: Kerr's marijuana admission could spark dialogue Posted: 03 Dec 2016 05:23 PM PST  OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — David West has undergone four surgeries in his long NBA career: left knee, right elbow and right foot twice to fix a couple of toes.
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| President Raul Castro says Cuba will prohibit naming of monuments, other sites after Fidel Castro Posted: 03 Dec 2016 05:08 PM PST HAVANA (AP) — President Raul Castro says Cuba will prohibit naming of monuments, other sites after Fidel Castro. |
| Uzbekistan has first election since Soviet-era ruler's death Posted: 03 Dec 2016 05:07 PM PST MOSCOW (AP) — Voters in Uzbekistan are casting ballots Sunday in the tightly controlled, ex-Soviet nation's first presidential election since the death of Islam Karimov, the authoritarian leader who ruled for 27 years. |
| Top Asian News 1:05 a.m. GMT Posted: 03 Dec 2016 05:05 PM PST BEIJING (AP) — Thirty-two miners were confirmed dead Sunday in the second coal mine explosion in a week in China, state-run media reported. The gas explosion hit the mine in Chifeng city in the Inner Mongolia region midday Saturday. Out of 181 miners working underground, 149 managed to get out and the rest died, official Xinhua News Agency reported. The mine was operated by the Baoma Mining Co. Ltd., Xinhua said. News of the blast came just hours after 21 miners who were trapped for four days after an explosion hit their unlicensed coal mine were confirmed dead in northeast China's Heilongjiang province. |
| Death toll in China's 2nd coal mine blast rises to 32 Posted: 03 Dec 2016 05:04 PM PST BEIJING (AP) — Thirty-two miners were confirmed dead Sunday in the second coal mine explosion in a week in China, state-run media reported. |
| Slovenia's Ilka Stuhec completes Lake Louise downhill sweep Posted: 03 Dec 2016 04:51 PM PST  LAKE LOUIS, Alberta (AP) — Slovenia's Ilka Stuhec completed a Lake Louise breakthrough downhill sweep Saturday.
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| Conte hails reformed match-winner Costa Posted: 03 Dec 2016 04:50 PM PST  Chelsea manager Antonio Conte lauded Diego Costa after the striker made a decisive contribution -- and kept his cool -- in the Premier League leaders' tempestuous 3-1 win at Manchester City. Costa cancelled out Gary Cahill's own goal opener and set up Willian for Chelsea's second goal as Conte's men came from behind on Saturday to record an eighth successive victory. The combative Spain international even acted as a peacemaker during an injury-time melee in which City pair Sergio Aguero and Fernandinho were sent off, belying his reputation as a firebrand.
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| Up to 40 feared dead in blaze at California party Posted: 03 Dec 2016 04:49 PM PST  Up to 40 people were feared dead in a huge fire that tore through a rave party in a warehouse near San Francisco, as authorities warned Saturday of a prolonged search and recovery effort. The building lacked permits for people to live and work as a group of artists did, and for the party to take place, officials said, adding that it also had no smoke detectors or sprinklers. The interim chief of Oakland's Planning Department, Darin Ranelletti, said the city had recently received complaints against the building for blight -- debris and trash -- placed in adjacent vacant lots, and illegal construction inside the building.
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| NHL Capsules Posted: 03 Dec 2016 04:44 PM PST  NASHVILLE, Tennessee (AP) — Michael Cammalleri's second goal of the game with 18 seconds remaining in overtime capped New Jersey's comeback from three goals down in the third period and gave the Devils a 5-4 win over the Nashville Predators on Saturday.
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| Cubans hold one more massive rally for Castro Posted: 03 Dec 2016 04:30 PM PST  Tens of thousands of Cubans rallied on Saturday to pay one more tribute to the late leader Fidel Castro before his ashes are buried in the cradle of his revolution. The crowd in Revolution Plaza in the eastern city of Santiago de Cuba waved small Cuban flags and held pictures of Castro at a ceremony led by his brother, President Raul Castro. Raul Castro, who took over when his brother fell ill in 2006, will deliver an eagerly awaited speech during the massive tribute with foreign dignitaries, the second such gathering this week after a huge rally in Havana on Tuesday.
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| England cap unbeaten year by beating Wallabies 37-21 Posted: 03 Dec 2016 04:28 PM PST  LONDON (AP) — Halftime couldn't come soon enough for England.
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| Ronaldo's agent publishes player's tax document in Spain Posted: 03 Dec 2016 04:21 PM PST  MADRID (AP) — Cristiano Ronaldo's agent has released a document that allegedly shows the player is in compliance with Spain's tax authority.
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| Diggins, Halfvarsson win cross-country World Cup races Posted: 03 Dec 2016 04:03 PM PST  LILLEHAMMER, Norway (AP) — American Jessie Diggins clinched her second individual World Cup victory on Saturday, beating overall leader Heidi Weng by 4.8 seconds on the 5-kilometer cross-country course.
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| Matsuyama soars to Challenge lead on eagle wings Posted: 03 Dec 2016 03:35 PM PST  Hideki Matsuyama, seeking his fourth title in the past two months, fired a seven-under par 65 Saturday to seize a seven-stroke lead after the third round of the Hero World Challenge. "The eagle at seven was huge," Matsuyama said. Matusyama stood on 19-under par 197 after 54 holes at the 18-player invitational event hosted by Tiger Woods, who is making his comeback this week after a 16-month back injury layoff.
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| South Africa beat Fiji 26-14 in Dubai Sevens final Posted: 03 Dec 2016 03:25 PM PST  DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — South Africa heads to its home rugby sevens event leading the world series after beating Fiji 26-14 in the Dubai final on Saturday.
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| Mourinho, Ronaldo deny tax evasion claims Posted: 03 Dec 2016 03:19 PM PST  Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho and Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo on Saturday denied hiding millions of euros in offshore accounts in a effort to avoid the tax man. An international consortium of media organisations claimed that a huge data leak involving 18 million documents showed Portuguese skipper Ronaldo hid 150 million euros from image rights in a British Virgin Islands tax havens. According to the European Investigative Collaborations (EIC) consortium, Mourinho is said to have concealed 12 million euros in a Swiss account owned by a British Virgin Islands company.
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| S. Korean wins World Cup skeleton opener, Antoine 3rd for US Posted: 03 Dec 2016 02:49 PM PST  WHISTLER, British Columbia (AP) — Yun Sung-bin was perhaps the biggest surprise on the World Cup men's skeleton circuit last winter, when he finished second in the season-long points standings. He's got eyes on a better finish this season.
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| Juventus ends Atalanta's dream run in Serie A with a 3-1 win Posted: 03 Dec 2016 02:47 PM PST  ROME (AP) — Since the end of September, no one had been better in Serie A than Atalanta.
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| Stick with England, Southgate urges Zaha Posted: 03 Dec 2016 02:45 PM PST  England manager Gareth Southgate hopes to persuade Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha not to switch allegiance to the Ivory Coast, he revealed this week. Zaha, capped twice by England, has asked world governing body FIFA to allow him to play for the Ivory Coast, which is the country of his birth. The 24-year-old has been pictured holding an Ivory Coast shirt with his name on alongside Ivorian Football Federation president Augustin Sidy Diallo and national coach Michel Dussuyer.
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| Montpellier upsets PSG in France; Lyon 'keeper hospitalized Posted: 03 Dec 2016 02:42 PM PST PARIS (AP) — Montpellier abruptly halted Paris Saint-Germain's 12-match unbeaten run with the defending French league champion losing 3-0 Saturday. The round was marred by the Lyon goalkeeper being hospitalized at Metz after firecrackers were thrown on the pitch. |
| Lyon goalkeeper in hospital after Metz firecrackers Posted: 03 Dec 2016 02:32 PM PST METZ, France (AP) — Lyon goalkeeper Anthony Lopes was taken to the hospital feeling dizzy on Saturday after firecrackers were thrown during a French league game at Metz, which was later abandoned. |
| Jaye Marie Green leads LPGA Tour Q-school Posted: 03 Dec 2016 02:27 PM PST DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Jaye Marie Green shot a 2-under 70 on Saturday on the Hills Course to take a two-stroke lead into the final round of the LPGA Tour qualifying tournament. |
| France upholds 25-year jail term for Rwanda genocide convict Posted: 03 Dec 2016 02:17 PM PST  A French court on Saturday upheld a 25 year prison sentence handed to a former Rwandan intelligence agent jailed in France's first trial over the African country's 1994 genocide. Pascal Simbikangwa was found guilty of genocide and complicity in crimes against humanity in a landmark 2014 trial that marked a turning point in France's approach to genocide suspects living on its soil. "We were naive -- we wanted to believe that he would not be sentenced in advance," his lawyer Fabrice Epstein said as she left the court in Bobigny outside Paris.
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| Huefner gets record-tying 37th World Cup luge victory Posted: 03 Dec 2016 02:16 PM PST  LAKE PLACID, N.Y. (AP) — Tatjana Huefner finally figured out Mount Van Hoevenberg and got a record-setting win in the process.
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| Relatives of Flight 370's missing seek help in Madagascar Posted: 03 Dec 2016 01:59 PM PST  ANTANANARIVO, Madagascar (AP) — Relatives of some of the 239 people who were on a Malaysia Airlines plane that vanished in 2014 arrived in Madagascar on Saturday to ask for help in the search for debris from the missing aircraft that may have drifted across the Indian Ocean.
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| Gassiev beats Lebedev for IBF cruiserweight belt Posted: 03 Dec 2016 01:41 PM PST  MOSCOW (AP) — Murat Gassiev dominated Denis Lebedev to win the IBF cruiserweight title on Saturday on a split decision.
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| Rain and sorrow accentuate memorial for dead at Brazil club Posted: 03 Dec 2016 01:35 PM PST  CHAPECO, Brazil (AP) — On a rainy Saturday that only accentuated the grief, 20,000 people filled a tiny stadium under umbrellas and plastic ponchos to say goodbye to members of the Chapecoense soccer club who died in a plane crash.
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