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| Pope, at Brazil shrine, urges youth to embrace traditional values Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 12:37 PM PDT By Philip Pullella and Esteban Israel APARECIDA, Brazil (Reuters) - Pope Francis, receiving another rapturous welcome in Brazil, on Wednesday urged young people to shun the "ephemeral idols" of money and pleasure and cherish traditional values to help build a better world. On the third day of his week-long visit for World Youth Day, a biennial Church gathering being celebrated in and around Rio de Janeiro, he landed by helicopter in Aparecida, 260 kilometers (161 miles) west of the coastal metropolis. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. intelligence officials warn Congress not to curb data collection Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 12:28 PM PDT  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. spy chiefs joined ranks on Wednesday against efforts in Congress to sharply curtail the National Security Agency's vast data collection program, warning that would endanger an essential intelligence tool. In an unusually public discourse on a secret spying program, James Clapper, the director of national intelligence, joined the White House and senior Republican lawmakers who oversee the intelligence agencies in cautioning against cutting funding for NSA's data collection. ... Full Story | Top |
| William and Kate name Britain's new royal heir George Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 12:26 PM PDT  By Costas Pitas LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's Prince William and his wife Kate have chosen three traditional royal names by calling their new-born baby boy George Alexander Louis, William's office said on Wednesday. The baby, born on Monday to global media frenzy and third in line to the British throne, will be known as His Royal Highness Prince George of Cambridge, Kensington Palace said in a statement. ... Full Story | Top |
| William and Kate name new royal heir George Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 12:24 PM PDT  By Costas Pitas LONDON (Reuters) - Prince William and his wife Kate have chosen three traditional royal names by calling their new-born baby boy George Alexander Louis, William's office said on Wednesday. The baby, born on Monday to global media frenzy and third in line to the British throne, will be known as His Royal Highness Prince George of Cambridge, Kensington Palace said in a statement. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. lawmaker worried NSA snooping will hurt digital trade Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 12:24 PM PDT By Doug Palmer WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. lawmaker said on Wednesday he was worried revelations about U.S. surveillance activity on the Internet could encourage governments to erect new barriers to digital trade just as United States is pushing to tear existing ones down. "That should be part of the equation when we're think how we should balance security and privacy. We should think about (how such surveillance activities affect) public perception in allied countries and ... how public perception impacts trade," said Representative Jared Polis, a Democrat. ... Full Story | Top |
| Interpol issues alert over Iraqi jail breaks Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 12:18 PM PDT PARIS (Reuters) - Interpol issued an international alert on Wednesday over hundreds of fugitives who escaped two Iraqi prisons in attacks claimed by al Qaeda, saying the jail breaks were a "major threat" to global security. More than 500 inmates fled on Monday following the simultaneous raids. "Many of the escaped prisoners were senior-level al Qaeda members, some of whom had been sentenced to death," Interpol said in its statement. ... Full Story | Top |
| Egypt's army raises pressure on Islamists with call for rallies Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 12:17 PM PDT By Asma Alsharif and Tom Perry CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's military chief called for mass rallies on Friday to give him a mandate to tackle violence that has surged following his overthrow of Islamist President Mohamed Mursi, ramping up pressure on the ousted leader's Islamist supporters. General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who deposed Mursi on July 3 and installed an interim administration in the wake of huge street protests, said on Wednesday he did not want more bloodshed and urged national reconciliation. ... Full Story | Top |
| Fox loses appeal over Dish's 'Hopper' ad-skipper Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 12:10 PM PDT  By Jonathan Stempel (Reuters) - A federal appeals court on Wednesday rejected Twenty-First Century Fox Inc's effort to stop Dish Network Corp from selling devices that let viewers skip over commercials on primetime broadcast shows. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court judge's refusal to temporarily halt sales of Dish's Hopper, which contains the ad-skipping feature known as AutoHop, and a related "marsupial-inspired" product called the Joey. ... Full Story | Top |
| Fugitive Snowden's hopes of leaving Moscow airport dashed Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 12:07 PM PDT  By Lidia Kelly MOSCOW (Reuters) - Fugitive U.S. spy agency contractor Edward Snowden's hopes of leaving Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport for the first time in a month on Wednesday were dashed when he failed to secure permission from Russia to leave. An airport source said Snowden, who is wanted by the United States on espionage charges for revealing details of government intelligence programs, was handed documents by his lawyer that were expected to include a pass to leave the transit area. ... Full Story | Top |
| NY press urges Weiner to quit mayoral bid, mocks new lewd chats Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 12:03 PM PDT  By Jonathan Allen and Edith Honan NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York City newspapers called for mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner to bow out of the race on Wednesday after fresh revelations that he had continued sexually charged online chats for more than a year after his resignation from Congress. Weiner, among the front-runners in the race for New York mayor, admitted on Tuesday he had continued sending lewd images of himself to women online - the very behavior that forced him out of office in 2011 - until at least last summer. "The serially evasive Mr. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. judge halts challenges to Detroit's bankruptcy bid Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 11:59 AM PDT By Bernie Woodall and Joseph Lichterman DETROIT (Reuters) - A U.S. bankruptcy court judge on Wednesday suspended lawsuits challenging Detroit's historic bankruptcy filing while he reviews the city's petition for protection from creditors. Following the first hearing in the case earlier on Wednesday, Judge Steven Rhodes issued a stay on all litigation related to the bankruptcy. Rhodes also extended that stay to lawsuits filed against Michigan's governor, state treasurer and Kevyn Orr, Detroit's state-appointed emergency manager who filed the biggest Chapter 9 municipal bankruptcy petition in U. ... Full Story | Top |
| Death toll from ethnic clashes in Guinea hits 98 Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 11:54 AM PDT CONAKRY (Reuters) - Three days of ethnic violence in Guinea last week left 98 people dead, nearly double the previous death toll, the government said on Wednesday. The violence erupted on July 14 after a man accused of being a thief was lynched. It took place during tense preparations for long-delayed elections meant to restore civilian rule after a 2008 military coup. "We are today at around 100 dead - 76 victims in (Guinea's second largest city) Nzerekore and 22 others in Koule," government spokesman Damantang Albert Camara said. ... Full Story | Top |
| Bomb, attacks hit Egypt's Sinai as army calls for rallies Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 11:51 AM PDT  CAIRO (Reuters) - A car bomb exploded near a police base and two soldiers were killed in separate, multiple attacks in Egypt's lawless Sinai peninsula, which has seen a spike in violence since the July 3 army ouster of the country's Islamist president. Four militants died when the car, rigged with gas canisters and carrying explosive belts, detonated in a desert area near the port town of El-Arish on Wednesday, the sources said. The attacks happened just hours after the head of Egypt's military called for rallies to back efforts to quell violence unleashed by the overthrow of Mohamed Mursi. ... Full Story | Top |
| Bulgarians stage new protest rally after siege of parliament Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 11:50 AM PDT  By Tsvetelia Tsolova and Angel Krasimirov SOFIA (Reuters) - Bulgarian anti-government protesters rallied peacefully in Sofia for the 41th straight day on Wednesday after more than 100 lawmakers, ministers and journalists spent the night besieged inside parliament before police evacuated them. A political crisis that began over utility price rises and spread to accusations that private interests control state institutions has caused months of protests in the ex-communist Black Sea nation, which joined the European Union in 2007 but has struggled to live up to its governance standards. ... Full Story | Top |
| Polish journalist kidnapped in Syria: activists Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 11:44 AM PDT BEIRUT (Reuters) - A Polish journalist was taken hostage by Islamist militants in northwest Syria on Wednesday, opposition activists said. Marcin Suder was abducted from an opposition media office in the rebel-held town of Saraqeb in Idlib province, activists from the area told Reuters. The Polish Foreign Ministry said it had set up a team of specialists based in Warsaw and its embassies in the Middle East to deal with what it described as his "likely" kidnapping, but declined to comment on whether it would send anyone into Syria. ... Full Story | Top |
| Timeline: How Edward Snowden evaded U.S. prosecution Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 11:40 AM PDT MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia will allow former U.S. spy agency contractor Edward Snowden papers to leave the transit area of Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport. He has been in limbo there since June 23, when he arrived from Hong Kong to evade espionage charges in the United States for disclosing details about secret U.S. surveillance programs. May 20 - Snowden leaves Hawaii for Hong Kong. June 1 - Snowden offers details of U.S. spying programs to Britain's Guardian newspaper. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. says allowing Snowden to leave airport would be 'disappointing' Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 11:40 AM PDT  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States would be deeply disappointed if Russia were to allow fugitive former U.S. spy agency contractor Edward Snowden to leave Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport, the State Department said on Wednesday. "Any move that would allow Mr. Snowden to depart the airport would be deeply disappointing," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters. She said U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry had telephoned Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to discuss the situation. Snowden, who is wanted by the United States for revealing details of U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| Exclusive: Diplomats test waters on U.N. Syrian aid resolution Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 11:38 AM PDT  By John Irish PARIS (Reuters) - Diplomats have started exploring whether they could get enough votes to pass a U.N. Security EXCouncil resolution to help aid groups get into Syria as the death count mounts, a French diplomatic source said on Wednesday. Syria's civil war has killed more than 100,000 people and left millions homeless. France's foreign minister said on Monday the Security Council, which has been deadlocked over how to respond to the war, needed to tackle the humanitarian crisis. ... Full Story | Top |
| Former UBS banker gets 18 months, $1 million fine, for muni bid-rigging scheme Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 11:33 AM PDT  By Bernard Vaughan NEW YORK (Reuters) - Former UBS AG banker Peter Ghavami was sentenced to 18 months in prison on Wednesday for his role in deceiving U.S. municipalities by rigging bids to invest municipal bond proceeds, a much shorter sentence than prosecutors had sought. U.S. District Judge Kimba Wood also ordered Ghavami, a Belgian national and the former global head of commodities at UBS, to pay a $1 million fine. Ghavami, 45, was the first of three former members of UBS' municipal securities desk to be sentenced in federal court in New York on Wednesday for their role in the scheme. ... Full Story | Top |
| Egypt orders fresh arrest of Brotherhood leaders Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 11:23 AM PDT CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's public prosecutor ordered the arrest of Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohamed Badie and eight senior members of the Islamist movement on Wednesday in a probe over accusations of inciting violence, MENA state news agency reported. Badie has been detained for questioning and later released at least once since the army deposed Islamist president Mohamed Mursi, a leader of the Brotherhood, on July 3. (Reporting and writing by Yasmine Saleh; Editing by Matt Robinson) Full Story | Top |
| Egypt's second largest Islamist party rejects army call for rally Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 11:19 AM PDT CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's second biggest Islamist Party said on Wednesday it rejected a call by the head of the army for mass rallies to give him a mandate to confront violence unleashed after the military deposed the country's Islamist president. "The state does not need a mandate to perform its duty as long as it is within the boundaries of the law," the party, Nour, said in a statement. "Violations of the law should be handled by the state, but the state's violations of the law threaten the very existence of the state," it said. ... Full Story | Top |
| Anglo American silicosis claimants turn to South African courts Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 11:15 AM PDT JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - A British court has thrown out a lawsuit against Anglo American South Africa brought by miners who contracted the deadly lung disease silicosis when they worked in South Africa, saying it did not have jurisdiction to hear the matter. A lawyer for the 2,336 miners said on Wednesday many of them planned to file papers in the next few days in South Africa seeking damages against the South African unit of the global mining giant. ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama seeks second-term jolt with economic speech Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 11:05 AM PDT  By Roberta Rampton GALESBURG, Illinois (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama sought to inject momentum into his economic and domestic policy agenda on Wednesday with a speech designed to clarify his vision for his second term and hammer Republicans in the House of Representatives for getting in his way. Obama defended his government's record managing the economy through the recession in his first term and said new spending on infrastructure and education were needed now to grow the middle class, which he argued would boost the nation's economy. ... Full Story | Top |
| DOJ's decision on criminal charges against SAC Capital nears Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 11:00 AM PDT  By Matthew Goldstein and Emily Flitter NEW YORK (Reuters) - Federal prosecutors who have investigated hedge fund titan Steven A. Cohen for years on allegations of insider trading have decided they do not have enough evidence to get him, so they are going after his company instead. The Manhattan U.S. Attorney's office is nearing a decision about filing criminal charges against Cohen's $15 billion SAC Capital Advisors hedge fund, said a person familiar with the matter. But there is no indication authorities will charge Cohen with any criminal wrongdoing. A spokeswoman for Manhattan U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| U.S. senator, Pentagon fight proposed change to sex assault case rules Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 10:54 AM PDT  By Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The chairman of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee on Wednesday released letters from Pentagon officials defending the military's system for handling sexual assault cases, fending off a fellow Democratic senator's plan for sweeping changes to deal with the rise in sexual assaults. The letters released by Senator Carl Levin raised arguments against a plan from Senator Kirsten Gillibrand that would shift the decision on whether to pursue sexual assault cases to an independent military prosecutor from the victim's commander. ... Full Story | Top |
| Bulger crony says he confessed to murders to avoid death penalty Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 10:52 AM PDT  By Scott Malone BOSTON (Reuters) - A former top henchman of James "Whitey" Bulger said he pleaded guilty to 10 murders so he could avoid the death penalty after the FBI cracked down on their gang, their boss fled Boston and other gang members started talking to prosecutors. "However you looked at it, I was dead," Stephen "The Rifleman" Flemmi testified. He recalled that in late 1994, a corrupt FBI agent told him and Bulger that authorities were closing in. ... Full Story | Top |
| Chicago City Council approves $500 million Wrigley Field revamp Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 10:37 AM PDT  CHICAGO (Reuters) - The Chicago City Council on Wednesday approved a $500 million proposed renovation of Wrigley Field, the historic home of the Chicago Cubs Major League Baseball team. The privately financed proposal for the 99-year-old ball park includes a $300 million renovation of the park itself and $200 million for improvements outside the park, including a hotel. (Reporting by Mary Wisniewski; Editing by Greg McCune and Gerald E. McCormick) Full Story | Top |
| Display of loyalty by Weiner's wife draws praise and pity Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 10:32 AM PDT  By Edith Honan NEW YORK (Reuters) - If Anthony Weiner remains a contender in the New York City mayor's race after admitting a second time he sent lewd pictures to women he met online, he will have his wife, Huma Abedin, to thank, political watchers said on Wednesday. Weiner, who resigned from Congress in disgrace two years ago and is now attempting a political comeback, acknowledged on Tuesday that he continued having sexually charged chats for more than a year after his tearful resignation. ... Full Story | Top |
| South Africa wants Zimbabwe vote to reflect people's will: Motlanthe Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 10:24 AM PDT  By Peroshni Govender and Jon Herskovitz PRETORIA (Reuters) - With a big vested interest in the stability of Zimbabwe, South Africa is keen that next week's election in its northern neighbor should fairly reflect the people's wishes, Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe said on Wednesday. Hundreds of thousands of refugees fled into South Africa after violence in the last election, in 2008, landing it with an expensive humanitarian crisis. But since it helped to broker a unity government, the economy has been recovering, creating opportunities for South African business. ... Full Story | Top |
| Obama halts delivery of F-16s to Egypt amid unrest Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 10:20 AM PDT  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama has decided to halt the planned delivery of four F-16 fighter jets to Egypt, the Pentagon said on Wednesday, amid the unrest that erupted after the military ousted Egypt's first democratically elected president. The move came two weeks after Reuters reported U.S. plans to go ahead with the delivery of the F-16s, and shows how the United States is struggling to respond to the removal of President Mohamed Mursi and an ensuing surge in violence. ... Full Story | Top |
| Detroit bankruptcy case judge proposes mediator for toughest disputes Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 09:52 AM PDT  (Reuters) - The bankruptcy judge overseeing Detroit's historic bankruptcy filing has proposed appointing a federal judge as mediator to hash out the most difficult disputes as the city struggles to resolve more than $18 billion in bond and pension obligations. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Steven Rhodes has proposed appointing federal judge Gerald Rosen to oversee confidential mediation, if it is needed. The proposal was filed Tuesday afternoon, included in a list of issues to be heard on August 2. The city filed the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history last week. ... Full Story | Top |
| Home sales hit five-year high, factories regain footing Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 09:49 AM PDT  By Lucia Mutikani WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New U.S. home sales vaulted to a five-year high in June, while other data on Wednesday showed an acceleration in factory activity in July, boosting hopes of a third-quarter pick-up in economic growth. Showing no signs yet of slowing in the face of higher mortgage rates, single-family home sales increased 8.3 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 497,000 units, the highest level since May 2008, the Commerce Department said. ... Full Story | Top |
| Gunmen attack Pakistan intelligence agency compound Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 09:40 AM PDT By Asim Tanveer MULTAN (Reuters) - A bomb and gun attack on the offices of the Pakistani intelligence agency in the southern town of Sukkur on Wednesday killed four people and wounded at least 40, police officials said, in a brazen challenge to the country's powerful military. More than an hour after the initial explosions, the gun battle was still raging as security services hunted up to 10 militants who detonated four bombs in the heavily guarded compound, Masood Bangash, the deputy superintendent of police in Sukkur, said. ... Full Story | Top |
| Plea deal still possible in Ariel Castro case of kidnapped women: lawyers Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 09:27 AM PDT  By Kim Palmer CLEVELAND (Reuters) - An agreement is still possible for former Cleveland school bus driver Ariel Castro to plead guilty to some charges such as kidnapping and rape of three women to avoid a public trial scheduled to start on August 5, lawyers for both sides said on Wednesday. Castro, 53, is accused of imprisoning and brutalizing the three women in his home for about a decade. He has pleaded not guilty to 977 charges including 512 counts of kidnapping and 446 counts of rape. ... Full Story | Top |
| Egypt's Abol Fotouh warns against army-called rally Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 09:25 AM PDT  CAIRO (Reuters) - The Egyptian army's call for rallies on Friday risks triggering violence, the party led by former Islamist Presidential candidate Abdel Moneim Abol Fotouh said on Wednesday, urging the military to row back for the sake of peace. "That call could lead to civil unrest, God forbid, in light of the opposing mobilization," the Strong Egypt party said in a statement, adding that it had listened to General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's appeal for demonstrations with "deep concern". ... Full Story | Top |
| Turkish president congratulates interim Egypt leader on anniversary Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 09:24 AM PDT  ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish President Abdullah Gul has sent a message to Egypt's interim leader in a bid to maintain diplomatic ties despite Ankara's refusal to officially recognize his government, officials said on Wednesday. Turkey has emerged as one of the fiercest international critics of what it has called an "unacceptable coup" after Egypt's military ousted the elected president, Mohamed Mursi, from office earlier this month. ... Full Story | Top |
| South Africa's ex-ANC 'bad boy' plans election bid against the odds Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 09:22 AM PDT  By Pascal Fletcher JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - He wears a red beret, talks the language of Revolution and calls himself "Commander in Chief". Any echo of Venezuela's late firebrand socialist leader Hugo Chavez is not accidental. Julius Malema, expelled "bad boy" of South Africa's ruling African National Congress and now facing racketeering charges he denies, this month launched the nation's newest political movement, calling for a revolutionary jolt to Africa's biggest economy through nationalization of mines and expropriation of white-owned land. ... Full Story | Top |
| Where is Russia headed? Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 09:20 AM PDT By John Lloyd (Reuters) - Masha Lipman, one of the great chroniclers of Russian politics, told a story at a conference I attended outside of Moscow earlier this week. It was about two scholars who, in a recent discussion about the history of Russia and the Soviet Union, fell into a savage argument. One saw the end of the Soviet Union as a tragedy, the other as a release from tyranny. So radical and bitter was the disagreement that they came to blows, an unheard of event in the generally decorous world of Russian academia. ... Full Story | Top |
| Jailed Russian female punk rock member loses parole appeal Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 09:14 AM PDT  PERM, Russia (Reuters) - A member of Russian female punk group Pussy Riot lost her appeal for parole on Wednesday after nearly a year in prison for performing a protest song against President Vladimir Putin in a Moscow cathedral. Maria Alyokhina's appeal against a previous decision to deny her early release from a two-year jail sentence was rejected by a court in the city of Perm, where she is serving her sentence, about 1,500 km (940 miles) east of Moscow. ... Full Story | Top |
| Five Russians plead not guilty in murder trial of Putin critic Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 09:05 AM PDT  MOSCOW (Reuters) - Five men on trial for murdering Russian investigative reporter Anna Politkovskaya, an ardent critic of President Vladimir Putin, pleaded not guilty on Wednesday in a court case that her family has decried as illegitimate. Politkovskaya, who angered authorities by investigating high-level corruption and documenting human rights abuses by Russian forces in the North Caucasus, was shot dead in 2006 in the Moscow residential building where she lived. ... Full Story | Top |
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