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| Insight: Canadian train disaster a dark turn for rail veteran Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 12:38 PM PDT  By Karl Plume, P.J. Huffstutter and Ernest Scheyder (Reuters) - A blinding flash of orange light jarred Weyauwega residents awake before dawn on March 4, 1996. An 81-car freight train had been barreling toward the farm town in central Wisconsin when it jumped a broken rail. The train's propane and petroleum cargo had caught fire and exploded. Gerald Poltrock II, a rookie local police officer, thought it was a prank when the dispatcher called to say the city "blew up." It was no joke. When he arrived at the Mill Street railroad crossing, Poltrock recalled, the scene was "mass chaos. ... Full Story | Top |
| Boehner refuses to take stand on key immigration provision Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 12:25 PM PDT  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner refused on Sunday to say whether a comprehensive immigration overhaul should include a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, declaring that the House debate is "not about me." Boehner, appearing on CBS's "Face the Nation," dodged repeated attempts to get him to spell out his personal views on a path to citizenship for up to 11 million illegal immigrants now in the United States, a major point of contention between the House and the Democratic-led Senate. ... Full Story | Top |
| Insight: Resigned to reform, Wall Street tries a different tack in DC Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 11:59 AM PDT  By Lauren Tara LaCapra and Douwe Miedema (Reuters) - In March, as U.S. bank regulators were framing a new rule that would affect the $630 trillion derivatives market, JPMorgan Chase & Co sent five bankers from New York and London to Washington to raise some fine points about the impact of the financial reform. In a jargon-laden, 23-slide presentation, the JPMorgan bankers walked regulators through the complexities of how their decisions would affect the arcane market, according to documents and a person familiar with the meeting. On July 2, the U.S. Federal Reserve released the final rule. ... Full Story | Top |
| Search on in East Cleveland after three plastic-wrapped bodies found Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 11:44 AM PDT By Kim Palmer EAST CLEVELAND, Ohio (Reuters) - Police in East Cleveland, Ohio, were leading volunteers in a search on Sunday for more possible victims of a suspected killer who left three women's bodies, wrapped in plastic, around a run-down neighborhood. East Cleveland Mayor Gary Norton said that Michael Madison, 35 has been arrested as a suspect after authorities in the past two days found the bodies near the apartment building where the suspect lived. Neighbors' complaints of a "pungent" smell triggered the search. ... Full Story | Top |
| Bankrupt Detroit cannot wait for federal cavalry: city manager Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 11:44 AM PDT  By Anna Yukhananov WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Detroit must dig itself out of the hole it created and cannot wait to see if the federal government will come to its rescue, the city's emergency manager said on Sunday. Kevyn Orr, charged with guiding the collapsed Motor City out of the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history, said any outside assistance would be "great" but he is not banking on it. "Hope is not a strategy from my perspective. I can't plan on the basis of what may or may not happen or what help may or may not come," Orr said on "Fox News Sunday. ... Full Story | Top |
| UK's Cameron urges Google, Yahoo to act on child pornography Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 11:36 AM PDT  By William James LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister David Cameron challenged the Internet search engine providers Google, Yahoo and Bing on Sunday to block images of child abuse, calling for more action against online pornography. In a television interview, Cameron said search engines must block results for searches using blacklisted keywords to stop Internet users accessing illegal images. Evidence in two recent high-profile child murders in Britain has shown that the killers accessed online child pornography. ... Full Story | Top |
| Cameron urges Google, Yahoo to act on child pornography Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 11:29 AM PDT  By William James LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister David Cameron challenged the Internet search engine providers Google, Yahoo and Bing on Sunday to block images of child abuse, calling for more action against online pornography. In a television interview, Cameron said search engines must block results for searches using blacklisted keywords to stop Internet users accessing illegal images. Evidence in two recent high-profile child murders in Britain has shown that the killers accessed online child pornography. ... Full Story | Top |
| Egypt starts amending constitution despite political divisions Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 11:05 AM PDT  By Maggie Fick and Noah Browning CAIRO (Reuters) - A panel of legal experts started work on Sunday to revise Egypt's Islamist-tinged constitution, a vital first step on the road to fresh elections ordered by the army following its removal of Mohamed Mursi as president. Mursi's Muslim Brotherhood, which has accused the army of orchestrating a military coup and denounced plans to revise the constitution, staged fresh rallies on Sunday to maintain pressure on the new, interim government. ... Full Story | Top |
| Netanyahu sees Mursi fall as sign of political Islam's weakness Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 10:36 AM PDT  BERLIN (Reuters) - In rare remarks on Egypt's government crisis, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has suggested that the fall of the president, Mohamed Mursi, demonstrates the weaknesses of political Islamist movements. "I believe that over the long haul these radical Islamic regimes are going to fail because they don't offer the adequate enfranchisement that you need to develop a country economically, politically and culturally," Netanyahu told the German weekly Welt am Sonntag. ... Full Story | Top |
| Kidnapped Mali election workers freed in north: official Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 10:00 AM PDT By Adama Diarra BAMAKO (Reuters) - Gunmen have freed four election workers and a deputy mayor a day after they were kidnapped in Mali's remote northern town of Tessalit, a local official said on Sunday. An unexploded bomb was later discovered in the market of Kidal, another major northern town, adding to security concerns over a vote next week that some fear could lead to further instability, after a coup and Islamist uprising, due to poor preparations. "The five hostages were picked up this morning by French soldiers outside the town. ... Full Story | Top |
| Gunmen abduct Iranian embassy worker in Yemeni capital Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 09:12 AM PDT SANAA (Reuters) - Armed men kidnapped an employee of the Iranian embassy in Yemen's capital Sanaa on Sunday, police sources said, the latest in a series of abductions of foreigners in the lawless Arab country. The Iranian man was travelling through the diplomatic quarter in southern Sanaa when gunmen blocked the road, forced him to get out of his vehicle and took him to an unknown location, the sources told Reuters. It was not immediately clear who carried out the kidnapping, they said. ... Full Story | Top |
| Cricket-Arthur says sacking has damaged his career Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 08:56 AM PDT * Australia sacked coach weeks before start of Ashes * Arthur accuses board of forcing him to take legal path (Adds Cricket Australia reaction) July 21 (Reuters) - Mickey Arthur has blamed Cricket Australia (CA) for forcing him to take legal action over his "unfair" sacking as coach of the national team and said the incident had caused major damage to his career and reputation. South African Arthur, the first non-Australian to coach the team, had a contract until 2015 but was sacked and replaced by Darren Lehmann in June, weeks before the start of the Ashes series against England. ... Full Story | Top |
| Japan's Abe has chance to show true colors after big election win Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 08:49 AM PDT  By Linda Sieg TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling coalition scored a decisive victory in an election on Sunday -- so big that there are suspicions he will lose interest in difficult economic reforms and pursue his nationalist agenda instead. The victory in the vote for parliament's upper house gives Abe a stronger mandate for his prescription for reviving the stagnant economy. Ironically perhaps, it could also give lawmakers in his own party, some of whom have little appetite for painful but vital reforms, more clout to resist change. ... Full Story | Top |
| Seven injured in explosion at Pemex pipeline in Mexico Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 08:44 AM PDT MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - At least seven people were injured by an explosion after an attempt to illegally tap a pipeline belonging to the Mexican state oil monopoly Pemex near Mexico City, officials said on Sunday. The early morning blast at the crude oil pipeline occurred in Tonanitla about 40 km (25 miles) north of the capital, and was now under control, Pemex said on its Twitter account. The government of the state of Mexico, a populous region that borders much of the capital, said seven people were injured by the explosion. Five were police and two worked for the fire brigade. ... Full Story | Top |
| Syrian Islamist rebel leader freed after clashes among rival rebels Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 08:42 AM PDT  By Erika Solomon BEIRUT (Reuters) - The local commander of a Syrian rebel group affiliated to al Qaeda was freed on Sunday after being held by Kurdish forces during a power struggle between rival organizations fighting President Bashar al-Assad, activists said. However, the pro-opposition activists gave conflicting reports of how the Islamist brigade commander in the Syrian town of Tel Abyad near the Turkish border had come to be free. ... Full Story | Top |
| Yields on Egypt T-bills fall on Gulf aid and cabinet hopes Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 08:41 AM PDT CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian treasury bill yields tumbled at an auction on Sunday on hopes that the transitional cabinet, armed with billions of Gulf Arab dollars, will shore up the economy and restore political stability. The cabinet, appointed last week, said in a statement after a meeting on Sunday that "the people need to be informed candidly about the size of Egypt's problems, which require quick and decisive action". Egypt received $2 billion in aid from Saudi Arabia on Sunday and $3 billion from the United Arab Emirates on Thursday. "You've got the cabinet now in place ... ... Full Story | Top |
| Jailed Kurdish rebel leader says peace process still on track Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 08:29 AM PDT ANKARA (Reuters) - Jailed Kurdish militant leader Abdullah Ocalan said on Sunday that a peace process to end three decades of conflict was still continuing with all "seriousness", but that Ankara needed to take concrete steps before parliament opens in October. There has been a rise in violence in Turkey's southeast in recent weeks, and Ocalan's militant Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) on Friday issued what it said was a "final warning" to Turkey to take steps to advance the process. (Reporting by Jonathon Burch; Editing by Kevin Liffey) Full Story | Top |
| Hong Kong reporter quits in controversy over Alibaba founder's remarks Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 08:25 AM PDT  By Pete Sweeney SHANGHAI (Reuters) - A Hong Kong journalist has quit in a controversy over disputed remarks that Jack Ma, founder of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group, is reported to have made in support of Beijing's violent crackdown on Tiananmen Square protesters in 1989. The controversy comes ahead of the anticipated listing of Alibaba, expected to value the firm at $60-$100 billion, which in turn has put a critical spotlight on Ma, the wider Chinese Internet industry and its approach to freedom of speech. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. Treasury Secretary Lew urges Greece to stick with reforms Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 08:15 AM PDT  ATHENS (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew urged Greece on Sunday to persevere with tough economic reforms during a one-day trip to Athens designed to demonstrate Washington's support for the crisis-plagued country. Greek government officials said Lew's talks focused on Greece's fiscal progress before Prime Minister Antonis Samaras meets U.S. President Barack Obama in Washington on August 8. "We recognize the difficult decisions and shared sacrifices of the last few years," Lew told reporters after meeting Samaras at the Acropolis Museum. "Of course the road ahead is still ... Full Story | Top |
| AFRICA INVESTMENT-China brings goods and roads, now Africa wants jobs Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 08:04 AM PDT By Daniel Flynn DAKAR (Reuters) - China has brought cheap consumer goods, roads and schools to many parts of Africa over the last decade but the continent's leaders are increasingly pushing for it to provide more of what many Africans want most: jobs. From Pretoria to Abuja, governments have begun voicing frustration that China's use of Africa as a source of natural resources and a market for its goods may be hindering the continent haul its billion people out of poverty. A recent report by the U.N. ... Full Story | Top |
| Japan urges Britain to keep 'major role' in EU Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 07:50 AM PDT LONDON (Reuters) - Japan has added its voice to international calls for Britain to maintain a leading role in the European Union, saying that membership is a key advantage for companies looking to access Europe's single market. British Prime Minister David Cameron's promise to renegotiate Britain's role in the EU and hold a referendum on EU membership by 2017 has already been greeted with concern by the United States among others. ... Full Story | Top |
| Bahraini parliamentarian's house attacked for second time Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 07:47 AM PDT ABU DHABI (Reuters) - Assailants attacked the home of a Bahraini member of parliament with petrol bombs on Sunday for the second time in a week, the state news agency BNA said, the latest in a series of assaults on public officials and security personnel in the kingdom. The most recent attack on the home of Abbas Isa al-Madi, chairman of parliament's Services Committee, follows one on July 15 in which was no one was hurt. Pictures published by BNA showed fire damage to walls surrounding the house. The Sunni Muslim-ruled island, home of the U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| Motorcycling-Italian Antonelli killed in race crash in Russia Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 07:42 AM PDT July 21 (Reuters) - Italian rider Andrea Antonelli died after a high-speed crash on the opening lap of a World Supersport Championship race at the Moscow Raceway on Sunday, Italian and Russian media reported. Antonelli suffered a head wound when he came off his Kawasaki at 250 kph in torrential rain on the opening lap and was hit by a following rider, Italy's Gazzetta dello Sport said. The 25-year-old Antonelli died after being taken to the circuit's medical centre, it added. Officials called off the race, and the day's headline World Superbike Championship event. ... Full Story | Top |
| Pakistan says seeks to reset frayed Afghan ties Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 07:16 AM PDT  By Mirwais Harooni KABUL (Reuters) - Pakistan's new foreign policy chief denied on Sunday backing Afghanistan's breakup or planning to end the Afghan war with a power-sharing role for the Taliban during a fence-mending visit to Kabul aimed at lowering cross-border tension. Sartaj Aziz, Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's adviser on foreign affairs, said Islamabad wanted a reset on diplomacy with Kabul after a sharp deterioration triggered by botched efforts to aid U.S. efforts to start peace talks with the Taliban in the Gulf state of Qatar. ... Full Story | Top |
| Syria activists say family of 13 killed in Sunni village Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 07:10 AM PDT BEIRUT (Reuters) - Forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad killed at least 13 members of a family in the Sunni Muslim village of Baida on Sunday, in what activists said was the second massacre there. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said four women and six children were among those killed in the village, which is in a coastal area of central Syria. "A relative came to look for them today and found the men shot outside. ... Full Story | Top |
| Factbox: Japan PM Abe scorecard: What to watch for after election Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 07:09 AM PDT TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe cemented his hold on power in an election on Sunday, ending six years of parliamentary deadlock with a big win in the upper house. Here are some key issues and dates to watch, to see whether Abe is using his mandate to keep campaign promises for economic reform. - SALES TAX: Abe's government says it will use April-June GDP data, due August 12, to help judge whether to proceed next April with the planned first phase of doubling the consumption tax to 10 percent over two years. ... Full Story | Top |
| Japan PM Abe says want to reach sales tax hike decision in autumn Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 06:52 AM PDT  TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Sunday that he wants to decide in the autumn whether to proceed with a scheduled sales tax hike next year, while looking carefully at economic indicators. "We have to look at various data, including the April-June GDP figures, and decide what needs to be done to clear hurdles such as beating deflation, achieving economic growth and restoring Japan's fiscal health. I'd like to reach a decision in the autumn," he said. "It will be a difficult decision. ... Full Story | Top |
| North Koreans get warm reception in South, win match Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 06:51 AM PDT  By Ju-min Park and Narae Kim SEOUL (Reuters) - North and South Korea put aside bitter political divisions for 90 minutes on Sunday as their women's soccer teams clashed in a regional tournament in Seoul, with the visitors scoring a decisive win and getting a warm welcome from home-team fans. Just months after the North's threats of nuclear war pushed the peninsula close to conflict, South Korean fans stood as the North's national anthem echoed around Seoul's World Cup stadium and even cheered when North Korea scored. ... Full Story | Top |
| Iran denies missing World Bank payments, blames sanctions Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 06:46 AM PDT By Jon Hemming DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran denied on Sunday it had failed to make payments on its loans to the World Bank for the last six months, blaming Western sanctions for preventing an intermediary from forwarding funds to the global lender, Iran's IRNA state news agency said. The World Bank said on Thursday it was placing Iran's loans in non-performing status as Tehran had not paid back any of the money it owed for more than six months. ... Full Story | Top |
| Egypt's central bank receives $2 bln Saudi loan - governor Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 06:30 AM PDT CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's central bank has received $2 billion in Saudi funds, the latest instalment of a $12 billion aid package pledged by Gulf Arab states after the military ousted Islamist President Mohamed Mursi on July 3. Egypt's finances, in havoc from political strife since Egypt's 2011 popular uprising, worsened in the first five months of 2013, with the budget deficit widening to almost half of all state spending. Foreign reserves fell to $14. ... Full Story | Top |
| Former England player Gascoigne charged with assault Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 06:24 AM PDT  LONDON (Reuters) - Former England footballer Paul Gascoigne was charged with two counts of common assault on Sunday, a prosecution official said. The 46-year-old former midfielder was also charged with one count of being drunk and disorderly following an incident at Stevenage railway station north of London earlier this month. Baljit Ubhey, the regional Chief Crown Prosecutor, said the charges related to July 4 when British transport police (BTP) had arrested a 46-year-old man. ... Full Story | Top |
| Soccer-Former England player Gascoigne charged with assault Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 06:22 AM PDT LONDON, July 21 (Reuters) - Former England footballer Paul Gascoigne was charged with two counts of common assault on Sunday, a prosecution official said. The 46-year-old former midfielder was also charged with one count of being drunk and disorderly following an incident at Stevenage railway station north of London earlier this month. Baljit Ubhey, the regional Chief Crown Prosecutor, said the charges related to July 4 when British transport police (BTP) had arrested a 46-year-old man. ... Full Story | Top |
| Analysis: Erdogan puts Turkish policymakers in dilemma Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 06:04 AM PDT  By Nick Tattersall and Asli Kandemir ISTANBUL (Reuters) - With a powerful prime minister bent on pumping up growth ahead of elections but a sliding currency and rising borrowing costs, Turkish policymakers are caught between a rock and a hard place. Rattled by weeks of anti-government protests and with a peace initiative for Kurdish militants looking increasingly fragile, the last thing Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan needs with an election cycle starting next year is an economic slowdown. ... Full Story | Top |
| Hamas reeling from Egyptian crackdown on Gaza tunnels Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 05:57 AM PDT By Nidal al-Mughrabi GAZA (Reuters) - Palestinians in the Gaza Strip are reeling from another devastating blockade but this time they are blaming Egypt, the neighboring Arab power they once hoped would end their isolation, rather than their old foe Israel. In a few weeks of digging, dynamiting and drenching, Cairo's troops have destroyed many of the smuggling tunnels that ran under the Egypt-Gaza border and which had provided the cramped coastal enclave with commercial goods as well as weaponry. ... Full Story | Top |
| OECD publishes plan to cut tax evasion Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 05:50 AM PDT By Tom Bergin LONDON (Reuters) - The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development has (OECD) unveiled new plans to tackle tax evasion by improving the way tax authorities share information about individuals and entities like trusts. Countries are increasingly moving to a standard of sharing information on taxpayers even in the absence of any specific request. This is more likely to flag up inappropriate behavior than the longer established practice of one tax authority starting an investigation into suspicions of wrongdoing, and then making a request for data. ... Full Story | Top |
| Belgium subdues divisions for a day to swear in king Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 05:16 AM PDT  By Robert-Jan Bartunek and Philip Blenkinsop BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Belgium swore in Philippe as its new king on Sunday after his father Albert II abdicated, subduing for a day questions about his ability to bring a divided country together and the power of the monarchy. Philippe, 53, took his oath in Belgium's three official languages - Dutch, French and German - two-and-a-half weeks after King Albert, 79, announced that he would abdicate after 20 years on the throne. Albert could be seen mouthing the words "Vive le roi" (Long live the king) at the swearing-in ceremony in parliament. ... Full Story | Top |
| In Detroit's ruin, law firms see land of new opportunity Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 05:14 AM PDT  By Nick Brown (Reuters) - With more than $18 billion at stake in Detroit's restructuring, big law firms and other advisers are clamoring to represent the city's many creditors - including some advisers not exactly known for municipal work. The city, which filed the largest-ever U.S. municipal bankruptcy on Thursday, tapped high-priced lawyers from Jones Day, financial advisers from Ernst & Young and restructuring consultants from Conway MacKenzie, court papers show. For creditors and related parties, there is clearly a lot at stake. ... Full Story | Top |
| Out of prison, former HealthSouth CEO Scrushy seeks redemption Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 05:11 AM PDT  By Jonathan Stempel and Verna Gates NEW YORK/BIRMINGHAM, Alabama (Reuters) - Freed from federal prison but still owing more than $2 billion to the company he once ran, former HealthSouth Corp Chief Executive Richard Scrushy is trying to make a comeback. Not everyone wishes him success. Scrushy said he has been talking to entrepreneurs and bankers about business opportunities in healthcare, while at the same time trying to persuade a federal judge that he is fit to serve as an officer or director of a public company. ... Full Story | Top |
| Poor quality and bad management: India ignored warnings in free meal program Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 04:18 AM PDT  By Annie Banerji and Anurag Kotoky GANDAMAN, India/NEW DELHI (Reuters) - The village school in India where 23 children died by poisoning last week had been providing lunch under a government-sponsored scheme without checks or monitoring by local officials to see if the food was stored carefully or cooked properly. ... Full Story | Top |
| Japan PM's coalition gets majority in upper house: exit polls Sunday, Jul 21, 2013 04:09 AM PDT  TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling bloc won a convincing victory in an upper house election on Sunday, media exit polls showed, giving the hawkish leader a mandate for his recipe to revive the economy, while ending a political deadlock and setting the stage for Japan's first stable government since 2006. Abe, who returned to power after his Liberal Democratic Party-led coalition's big win in a December lower house poll, has said he will stay focused on fixing the economy with his "Abenomics" mix of hyper-easy monetary policy, fiscal spending and structural reforms. ... Full Story | Top |
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