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Obama welcomes Iran's election of moderate president

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:40:07 -0400

WASHINGTON - US President Barack Obama has urged Iran's newly elected president to prove to the world that the Islamic republic was not pursuing a nuclear weapon programme as the White House welcomed election of a moderate leader as a hopeful sign. "I think it says that the Iranian people want to move in a different direction," Obama said of the election results in Iran that saw a surprising ...

Widespread anti-graft protests rock Brazil

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:37:27 -0400

SAO PAULO, Brazil - Anti-graft protests swept Brazil's main cities as some 200,000 demonstrators marched through the streets against alleged mis-governance, forcing President Dilma Rousseff Tuesday to acknowledge the need for better public services and effective administration. The assurance from Rousseff came a day after biggest protests rocked at least ten Brazilian cities, including Sao ...

No breakthrough in talks between UK and Ecuador over Assange

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:37:11 -0400

LONDON - Talks between the United Kingdom and Ecuador have ended without any breakthrough over WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's fate with the Andean nation. Ecquador said it was vowing not to succumb to diplomatic pressure and was ready to consider any request from Edward Snowden, another whistleblower, for asylum. As the fugitive anti-secrecy advocate marks one year holed up in the ...

Gaddafi's son to stand trial in Libya in August

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:29:24 -0400

LONDON - Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, the son of deceased Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, will stand trial in August along with Gaddafi's last prime minister and a former intelligence director, the prosecutor's office has announced. The men will be tried for crimes against the Libyan people during the 2011 uprising that toppled the former regime. Notorious former spy chief Abdullah ...

Shenzen to be first Chinese city to begin carbon trading

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:12:35 -0400

BEIJING - China, the world's biggest carbon emitter, is set to launch Tuesday its first carbon trading scheme as a pilot project in the southern city of Shenzhen as part of efforts to cut emissions in its key cities. Carbon emissions trading schemes are meant to encourage companies to reduce their carbon dioxide emissions by setting a limit or a cap, on the level of emission that can be ...

Leaders of G8 call for peace in Syria and pledge humanitarian aid

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:28:36 -0400

ENNISKILLEN - The Group of Eight industrialised nations called for a swift end to the bloody civil war in Syria and urgent peace talks but stopped short of calling for the ouster of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad in its joint statement at the end of talks Tuesday. Despite the lack of consensus among the G8 on the fate of Assad, as well as the use of chemical weapons by his regime, Canadian ...

Australian fashionistas mourn closing of Lisa Ho boutiques

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 00:50:01 -0400

Australian fashionistas are mourning the closing of the Lisa Ho fashion house, which has dressed stars such as Olivia Newton-John, Jennifer Lopez and Elle Macpherson over the past three decades. Lisa Ho Group, which has total debts of some A$10.47 million ($9.91 million), handed over control of its operations to receivers earlier this month as part of its bankruptcy filing. The Lisa Ho ...

Egypt says it values its relations UAE

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 00:20:01 -0400

Egypt is proud of its deep-rooted fraternal ties with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and its people, an Egyptian foreign ministry spokesperson has said. The relations with the UAE were based on mutual respect and joint interests, and would not be affected by any statements here or there, said spokesperson Badr Abdel Aaty in an official statement. The Egyptian foreign ministry was closely ...

Kesha likes showing off legs

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:40:01 -0400

Singer Kesha says she has worked really hard to get perfect toned legs and therefore likes flaunting them. The 26-year-old, who has sung songs like "Tik tok", "Blow" and "Die young", is proud of her figure. "For me, I like showing off my legs because I work really hard on them. So, you will rarely find me wearing pants," Self magazine quoted Kesha as saying. The singer has posed for the cover ...

Kourtneys motherhood tips to Kim

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:20:02 -0400

Socialite Kim Kardashian's sister Kourtney has reportedly asked the new mother to be more careful with her lifestyle now. Kim, 32, gave birth to her and rapper Kanye West's daughter June 15. Kourtney, mother of son Mason, 12, and 11-month-old daughter Penelope, believes that Kim's life is not going to be the same now. "Kourtney has told Kim that she has no idea what she's in for as a mom," ...

Williams jealous of Styles

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:50:01 -0400

Singer Robbie Williams says he is jealous of teen sensation Harry Styles' female fan following and link ups. Styles, 19, is said to be a ladies' man and is time and again linked to a new woman. The singer, member of One Direction band, last dated singer Taylor Swift, but called off the relationship in January this year. "I've been following Harry and his messy romances and been slightly ...

UN chief hails G8 leaders understanding on Syria

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:20:02 -0400

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon Tuesday welcomed the understanding reached on Syria by leaders of the Group of Eight (G-8) industrial nations. Ban welcomed the commitment to bring the Syrian sides to the negotiating table, saying that he stands ready to convene the Geneva Conference on Syria as soon as possible to help the Syrian sides reach "a comprehensive agreement based on the Geneva ...

Israel wants Iran to halt uranium enrichment

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:20:01 -0400

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that his country would not accept anything less than the total halt of Iranian uranium enrichment. "We cannot accept anything less than a total cessation of all enrichment of nuclear materials at all levels, removal of all enriched nuclear material and a closure of Iran's illicit nuclear facilities," reported Xinhua citing Netanyahu during a ...

Rihanna to seek therapy to get over break up

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:00:01 -0400

Singer Rihanna is reportedly seeking a medical programme in order to cure her heartache, post her break up with Chris Brown. The 24-year-old is nursing her broken heart ever since her on and off relationship with Chris Brown came to an end a few weeks back. However, now she wants to move on from her past and is going to seek a 12-step programme for it, reports thesun.co.uk. "Rihanna is still ...

UAE Australia hold talks

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:50:02 -0400

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Australia have held talks over a number of issues of mutual interest and explored ways to develop bilateral relations in all sectors. The talks were held Tuesday between General Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE's deputy prime minister and Roger Wilkins, the visiting Australian director of public prosecution. Other important officials were also present on ...

60 killed in Nigerian village attacks

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:50:01 -0400

At least 60 people were killed in Nigeria Tuesday when some gunmen stormed four villages of Zamfara state early morning, residents and security sources said. About 100 gunmen, first stormed Kizara village around 3.00 a.m. and began attacking the residence of poor villagers. In the process, an unknown number of people were killed, including the District Head of Kizara, Bello Ibrahim, who was ...

Surveillance programmes thwarted terror plots US NSA chief

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:50:01 -0400

Two phone and Internet surveillance programmes run by the US National Security Agency (NSA) helped disrupt over 50 potential terrorist attacks against the US and its allies, the agency's chief said Tuesday. Two classified programmes, one collecting US phone records and the other mining Internet data, were revealed last week after leaks from defense contractor Edward Snowden. The Congress panel ...

Havent heard from Brand post-divorce Katy Perry

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:50:01 -0400

Singer Katy Perry says she has not communicated with her ex-husband Russell Brand post receiving a text from him asking for divorce. The couple's marriage ended in December 2011, just 14 months after they tied the knot in India. Their split was made legal in July 2012, but the pop star claims she hasn't heard from Brand since then, reports femalefirst.co.uk. "He's a very smart man, a magical ...

General Motors recalls 231000 SUVs over fire risk

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:10:01 -0400

US General Motors Co. is set to recall about 231,000 older SUVs over fire risks and has urged owners to park them outside garages until they are repaired, a media report said. The Detroit-based automaker agreed to recall 193,000 2006-2007 Chevrolet Trailblazer, GMC Envoy, Buick Rainier, SAAB 9-7x, Isuzu Ascender and 2006 Chevrolet Trailblazer EXT and GMC Envoy XL in the US, reported Xinhua. The ...

US Taliban to have direct peace talks

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:40:01 -0400

The US has decided to hold direct peace talks with the Taliban, senior White House officials have announced. The first meet is due to take place in the coming days in Qatar's capital, where the Taliban have opened their first official overseas office, BBC reported. US officials told reporters the first formal meeting between the US and Taliban representatives was expected to take place in Doha ...

I dont have a home Will.i.am

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 15:40:01 -0400

Singer Will.i.am doesn't have a home despite purchasing properties for several close family members and paying off their mortgages. The "Scream and Shout" hitmaker has never bought a house for himself and calls his recording studio his abode, reports femalefirst.co.uk. "I don't have a home. But I bought my mum, uncle, aunt and grandma their homes," said the 38-year-old. "And then what some ...

G8 condemns use of chemical weapons in Syria

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:30:02 -0400

G8 leaders Tuesday condemned any use of chemical weapons in Syria, and that they were deeply concerned by the growing threat from terrorism and extremism in the Middle East country. In a final communique issued after the annual G8 summit in Lough Erne, Northern Ireland, the leaders called on all parties in the conflict to allow access to the UN investigating team, Xinhua reported. It said the ...

Pakistani leader among 29 killed in suicide bombing

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:10:01 -0400

A member of the provincial assembly of Pakistan's northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was among 29 people killed in a suicide bombing Tuesday, media reports said. Over 50 people were injured. Independent member Imran Mohmand was killed in the blast at a funeral procession in Mardan, Geo News reported. Police said the blast took place during the funeral procession of Haji Abdullah, a well-known figure ...

13 dead as bus plunges into valley in China

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 11:20:03 -0400

At least 13 people were killed when a tourist bus plunged into a valley Tuesday in northwest China, traffic police said. The bus, carrying 36 passengers, fell into the valley in Xinjiang Uygur region, Xinhua reported. At least 23 people were wounded. The accident took place around 5 p.m. when the bus was travelling to a tourist spot near Changji city. Heavy fog and poor visibility was blamed ...

Woman jailed in Italy for dumping baby in toilet

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 11:20:02 -0400

A court in Rome Tuesday sentenced a young Romanian woman to four years in prison on attempted murder charges after she abandoned her newborn baby inside a toilet in a restaurant. Andreia Grancea, 21, gave birth to the baby in the restaurant in Rome in December last year. She fled the scene, and the baby was rescued by two girls who entered the toilet minutes later. The case is similar to the ...

Israeli army refuses to let soldier read poems on radio

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 10:50:01 -0400

A brigade in the Israeli Defence Forces has banned a soldier from reading out his own verses on the radio over fears that it might cast aspersions on the army's "manliness", a media report said. The Independent daily said that throughout history, soldiers on the battlefield "have been inspired to write some of the world's most memorable poetry". The unnamed soldier from the Nahal Infantry ...

Europe will regret arming Syrian rebels says Assad

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 10:30:01 -0400

Embattled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has warned Europe that it will live to regret arming rebel factions in the Syrian conflict. The move to arm the rebels would lead to the "export" of terrorism to the continent, The Independent daily quoted the president as telling German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. Assad rejected Western claims that his forces had deployed chemical ...

4500 British soldiers made redundant

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 10:10:02 -0400

In what is being termed as the biggest single cut to the size of the British army, 4,480 soldiers have been handed redundancy notices after they applied for it, a media report said Tuesday. The number of personnel will be reduced to 82,000 by 2018 from more than 100,000 three years ago, the Guardian daily reported. The defence ministry said Tuesday that 84 percent of those affected had applied ...

Italian jihadist killed in Syria

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 10:10:01 -0400

A young Italian who converted to Islam and joined rebels seeking to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has been killed in Syria, an Italian daily said. Citing intelligence and interior ministry sources, the Il Giornale daily named the youth as 20-year-old Giuliano Delnevo from the northwestern port city of Genoa. He took the name Ibrahim on converting to Islam, but his family had no ...

Sania-Liezel enter Eastbourne quarters

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 10:00:01 -0400

Indo-American pairing Sania Mirza and Liezel Huber defeated Croatian-British duo of Darija Jurak and Heather Watson to enter the quarterfinals of the women's doubles event at the Aegon International here Tuesday. The second seeds were not in their elements but managed to win their first round tie 7-6(4), 7-6(3) in one hour and 36 minutes on the grass courts of Devonshire Park. Sania-Liezel had ...

Smuggled reptiles seized in China

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 09:50:02 -0400

Border police in south China have seized a large number of snakes and tortoises in a cross-border smuggling case, officials said. The reptiles, contained in 160 boxes in a truck, were confiscated in the coastal city of Fangchenggang in Guangxi Zhuang region, Xinhua reported. The public security border defence forces said most of the animals were alive when they were found. Police suspect that ...

Chanderpaul out of CPL Pomersbach in

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 09:50:01 -0400

West Indies middle order batsman Shivnarine Chanderpaul has been forced to withdraw from the first ever Caribbean Premier League (CPL) because of his contractual obligations with English county team Derbyshire. Organisers say Chanderpaul signed a contract with CPL, offering himself for selection but later realised that his commitment to Derbyshire provided for release only if it pertained to ...

Spanish cyclist Rodriguez eyes Tour de France crown

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 09:40:02 -0400

Spanish cyclist Joaquin 'Purito' Rodriguez believes that he is one of the main contenders to win the Tour de France beginning at the end of June. The 34-year-old Spaniard has managed podium finishes in the Giro de Italia and Vuelta de Espana races, to highlight his credentials and the fact that he has evolved from a rider who would always be a threat in one day races as a result of his ability ...

More flights for repatriation of Indians from Saudi Arabia

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 09:40:01 -0400

Additional flights will operate between Saudi Arabia and India to help in the repatriation of illegal Indian expatriates who want to return to India from the Gulf nation, a top Indian diplomat has said. "The embassy has taken up the issue with the Indian authorities, and accordingly Air India, the national flag carrier, has expressed its readiness to operate flights," the Saudi Gazette Tuesday ...

TCS holds camp in US for science maths students

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 09:30:02 -0400

India's leading IT services, Tata Consultancy Services, held its goIT summer camp programme in the Cincinnati area exposing students to Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) related career paths. The fifth annual three-day camp providing hands on activities and projects that increase exposure to industry specific technologies, culminated with a competition at TCS' largest North ...

Katy Perry reveals hair colour disaster

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 09:30:02 -0400

Singer Katy Perry says she started dyeing her natural blonde hair black after an attempt to bleach her locks like pop star Madonna went wrong. The 28-year-old said: "I've been dyeing my hair black since I was 15. The whole reason I dye it is that I was 15 and I chopped it all off. I had it bleached blonde like Madonna and it didn't look right so I bought a box of hair dye and dyed it all black ...

Walsh feels beautiful by doing body basics

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 09:30:01 -0400

Singer-songwriter Kimberley Walsh says that one doesn't need to "spend a fortune" on expensive beauty products "to look and feel great". "Covering over the cracks with makeup and fake tan doesn't always make us look or feel better. I always feel more confident and beautiful by doing the body basics before I step out," femalefirst.co.uk quoted Walsh as saying. "You don't need to spend a fortune ...

Kate Middleton voted top fashion icon

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 09:30:01 -0400

The Duchess of Cambridge has been voted the 'fashion icon', while late Hollywood actress Audrey Hepburn has emerged as 'icon of all times' in an online poll. StyleinView.co.uk, a one-stop shop for fashion, has conducted a poll of 2,000 people to find out who they considered the fashion icons of today and of all time. The Duchess of Cambridge, whose maiden name is Kate Middleton, unsurprisingly ...

Champions Trophy Srinath match referee for first semifinal

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 09:20:02 -0400

Former India fast bowler Javagal Srinath was Tuesday appointed the match referee for the first Champions Trophy semifinal between England and South Africa at the Oval on Wednesday. Kumar Dharmasena and Rod Tucker are the on-field umpires while Bruce Oxenford and Steve Davis have been appointed as third and fourth umpires, International Cricket COuncil (ICC) said. Englishman Chris Broad has been ...

16 killed in Nepal floods

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 09:20:01 -0400

At least 16 people were killed and several others went missing in Nepal in floods and landslides triggered by heavy rainfall, officials said Tuesday. Seven members of a family were killed when their house collapsed due to a landslide in Dailekh district, police said. In Baitadi district, five members of a family were killed in a landslide, Red Cross officials said. In Achham district in west ...

Indias batting looks ominous Jayawardene

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 08:40:02 -0400

Senior Sri Lanka batsman Mahela Jayawardene has said they need to contain the "strong Indian batting" when the two teams meet in the Champions Trophy semifinal Thursday. The 36-year-old led his team to victory over Australia by scoring an unbeaten 84 in their last group match Monday when Sri Lanka won by 33 runs, to fix a date with India at Sophia Gardens, Cardiff. "I think India are playing ...

Man disrupts US flight by screaming about CIA

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 08:20:02 -0400

A man stood up from his seat during a flight to the US, and screamed about the CIA, security leaks and poison, but was subdued by fellow passengers, a media report said Tuesday. The disruption occurred Monday during the United Airlines Flight 116 from Hong Kong that eventually landed safely at its scheduled destination in Newark, CNN reported. Passengers onboard the Boeing 777 flight said the ...

WICB president meets regional dignitaries

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 08:20:02 -0400

The president of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) Dave Cameron has described a series of meetings he has been having with Caribbean prime ministers as "crucial" to the development of the sport in the region. Cameron's comments follow his latest round of meetings in which talks were held with St. Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves in Kingstown and Prime Minister of ...

Over 100 Chinese held for environmental pollution

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 08:20:01 -0400

As many as 118 suspects have been detained in China for their involvement in environmental pollution cases, authorities said Tuesday. The ministry of public security said the suspects were detained since January, Xinhua reported. Most of the pollution cases involve mining or petrochemical factories. Some factories reportedly discharged toxic substances into the environment illegally, while ...

Malaysian Indian Congress party polls this year

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 08:20:01 -0400

The organisational elections of the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) will be held within this year as against the party's earlier decision to hold these from January next year. After a meeting of the party's central working committee (CWC) at the party headquarters in Kuala Lumpur Tuesday, MIC president G. Palanivel announced that the decision to hold the party elections this year has been taken ...

32 die in Iraq suicide bombing

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 07:50:02 -0400

At least 32 people were killed and over 50 injured in twin suicide bomb attacks at a mosque in the Iraqi capital, an interior ministry official said. The attacks occurred around midday at the al-Husseiniyah mosque in al-Qahira district, when two suicide bombers blew themselves up during prayers, Xinhua reported. The official said the two attackers first shot dead the guards of the mosque with ...

No corruption in Male airport deal says watchdog

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 07:30:01 -0400

The Maldives anti-corruption watchdog has ruled out any corruption in the deal to award the country's only operational international airport to Indian infrastructure giant GMR group, a media report said Tuesday. The $511 million project was abruptly cancelled by the Maldivian government in November 2012. The Anti-Corruption Commission's 61-page investigation report into alleged corruption in ...

Thulasi Arundhati Sai Praneeth enter main draw in Singapore

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 07:20:02 -0400

Indian shuttlers P.C. Thulasi, Arundhati Pantawane and B. Sai Praneeth entered the main draw after winning the qualification rounds of their respective categories at the Singapore Open Super Series here Tuesday. Sai Praneeth, who sent legendary Taufik Hidayat into retirement last week, won both his men's singles qualification matches. The youngster beat Japanese Riichi Takeshita 21-12, 22-20 in ...

Saudi Arabia e-security centre to prevent hacking

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 07:20:01 -0400

Saudi Arabia has set up a national e-security centre to protect the country's e-system from hackers, a media report said Tuesday. Several hackers have been attacking government websites to steal data by planting undetected viruses for months, the centre's director, Abdulrahman Al Mueeqal, was quoted as saying by the Al Sharq Al Awsat newspaper. The centre will review the e-security system and ...

280 new moon craters identified

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 07:00:01 -0400

Using ultra-high resolution mapping techniques, scientists from Australia have identified 280 craters on the moon that have never been mapped before. The researchers at Curtin University in Western Australia used computer modelling of lunar gravity and topography data to explore detailed basins that would be obscured using other methods, Xinhua reported. A total of 66 of the craters identified ...

15 killed in Iraq suicide bombing

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 06:40:01 -0400

At least 15 people were killed and 30 others wounded in a suicide bomb attack at a Shia mosque in the Iraqi capital Tuesday, an interior ministry official said. The attack occurred around midday when a suicide bomber blew up his explosives-laden vest among worshippers at the mosque in al-Qahira district, Xinhua reported. The toll of the attacks could rise, officials said. Ambulances, civilian ...

NATO hands over security to Afghans

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 06:30:02 -0400

NATO Tuesday handed over security to Afghan forces for the whole of Afghanistan for the first time since the Taliban were ousted in 2001. At a ceremony in Kabul, Afghan President Hamid Karzai said that from Wednesday "our own security and military forces will lead all the security activities", BBC reported. Tuesday's ceremony saw the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) hand ...

Hughes Wade join Australia A squad

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 06:30:02 -0400

Left-handed batsman Phil Hughes and wicket-keeper Matthew Wade will join the Australia A squad here Tuesday ahead of their final tour match against Gloucestershire beginning Friday. Skipper Michael Clarke, James Faulkner, Mitchell Starc, David Warner, Shane Watson and Chris Rogers will remain in London to prepare before the Ashes squad officially assembles June 24. Australia were knocked out of ...

98-year-old charged with Nazi war crimes

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 06:30:01 -0400

Prosecutors in Hungary have charged 98-year-old Laszlo Csatary with participation in Nazi war crimes, a media report said Tuesday. Csatary is under arrest in Hungary, accused of assisting in the murder of 15,700 Jews during World War II. He denies the allegations, BBC reported. In 1944, Csatary was serving in the Nazi police in Kosice, now in Slovakia. The Simon Wiesenthal Center, based in Los ...

Martinez new Valladolid boss

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 06:10:03 -0400

Spanish La Liga club Valladolid have confirmed Juan Ignatio Martinez as their new first team coach. Martinez has signed a two-year contract with the club where he replaces Miroslav Djukic, who announced he was leaving at the end of the recently finished season after two campaigns at the club. Djukic has been named as the successor to Ernesto Valverde at Valencia, reports Xinhua. Martinez had ...

George Clooney in touch with ex-girlfriend

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 06:10:02 -0400

Hollywood actor George Clooney might be dating former wrestler Stacey Keibler, but his ex-girlfriend Lisa Snowdown says he stays in touch with her as well. Clooney dated Snowdown on and off from 2000 to 2005 and Snowdown says they are good friends now, reports contactmusic.com. "I haven't seen him for a while, but we text one another. He is a good guy. There are some people in your life that ...

Pray for people youre angry with Pope

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 06:10:02 -0400

Pope Francis has urged Catholics to turn the other cheek. "Are you angry with someone? Pray for that person. That is what Christian love is," he said. The Argentine pontiff has over six million followers on his @Pontifex account on microblogging website Twitter. His tweets are published in nine languages. Francis said that the first priority for "true" Christians was to "allow the Lord to open ...

IIT-ian becomes dean of top Singapore business school

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 06:10:02 -0400

Ravi Kumar, an alumnus of the Indian Institute of Technology -Madras (IIT-M), has been appointed dean of the Nanyang Business School (NBS) in Singapore's Nanyang Technological University (NTU), it was announced Tuesday. In a press release issued by the university, Kumar, 61, has been described as "an academic heavyweight with a good blend of east-west experience". Ravi Kumar comes to Singapore ...

Smith to lead Windies A in T20s against Sri Lanka A

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 06:10:02 -0400

West Indies batsman Dwayne Smith will lead the West Indies A team against Sri Lanka A in two Twenty20 matches this week at Arnos Vale here. Smith, a prolific scorer in the just ended Indian Premier League (IPL), is one of four members of the West Indies World T20 champion team named in the regional A team for the series, reports CMC. The others are Lendl Simmons, allrounder Andre Russell, and ...

Kate Middleton celebrated Fathers Day in hometown

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 06:10:01 -0400

The Duchess of Cambridge, whose maiden name was Kate Middleton, celebrated Father's Day with her dad, Michael Middleton, in her hometown. The pregnant royal spent the day in the West Berkshire village of Bucklebury, where she grew up. The father-daughter were spotted together, along with Kate's security, at a petrol station filling up their car, reports eonline.com. "I was getting petrol too ...

Lahiri seeks shortcut to victory in Malaysia

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 05:50:02 -0400

Indian golfer Anirban Lahiri will rely on the short putter in his hunt for a fourth Asian Tour title at the Worldwide Holdings Selangor Masters Thursday. The three-time Asian Tour winner, who previously used the belly putter, opted for the shorter flat stick at last week's Queen's Cup in Thailand where he finished tied 10th after fighting his way into contention. Lahiri is among a star-studded ...

What distracts Taylor Swift on stage

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 05:50:01 -0400

Singer Taylor Swift says while performing on the stage she is distracted by fans with sign boards and she goes off track. The 23-year-old, known for her songs like "Love story", "Teardrops on my guitar" and "You belong with me", starts reading the signs and forgets her lyrics, reports thesun.co.uk. "It's amazing and adorable, but if there's a really long sign and I'm trying to read it while I'm ...

Britney Spears sons embarrassed to kiss mom

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 05:40:01 -0400

Singer Britney Spears' kids are embarrassed of kissing her in front of their friends. The 31-year-old singer admitted Sean Preston, 7, and Jayden James, 6, from her marriage to dancer-rapper Kevin Federline, don't like to kiss her in front of their friends because they don't think it's "cool", reports contactmusic.com. "My sons are six and seven, so they're just now getting to the stage of ...

Be polite respectful Caroline Winberg tells models

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 05:30:01 -0400

Supermodel Caroline Winberg says models need to be professional to everyone if they really want to survive in the fashion industry. The 28-year-old also feels that models should have the ability to remain polite and respectful at all times. "I think it's important to always keep professional and surround yourself with good people, work hard and be nice to everyone," femalefirst.co.uk quoted ...

Weak appointments undermine Afghan rights body

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 05:20:01 -0400

Afghan President Hamid Karzai's appointment of a weakly qualified human rights commission with little public consultation raises concerns about the country's most important rights body, Human Rights Watch said Tuesday. On June 15, Karzai announced the appointment of five new commissioners to the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC), most of whom appear to have little or no ...

Raja-Sharan advance in Wimbledon qualifiers

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 05:10:02 -0400

Indian tennis pair Purav Raja and Divij Sharan advanced to the men's doubles second round of the Wimbledon qualifiers here by winning their match in straight sets. The qualifying fourth seeds Monday defeated Italian-American pairing Flavio Cipolla and Wayne Odesnik 6-4, 6-2 on the lone grass court major. In the second and final qualification round, they will face Austro-Czech duo Andreas ...

Norman retires from professional tennis

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 05:10:01 -0400

Veteran Belgian tennis player Dick Norman called time on his 22-year professional career after a first-round doubles loss alongside compatriot David Goffin, 20 years his junior, at the Topshelf Open here. "I had around 60 people here today including my wife, my parents and my two daughters. It's nice to retire here and we'll have some beers later this evening on site at the Corona bar," Norman ...

Long jumper Smith qualifies for World Championships

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 05:10:01 -0400

Bermudian long jumper Tyrone Smith has qualified for the World Athletics Championships in Moscow, leaping to a season's best 8.13 metres at a meet in Poland. Smith's jump saw him finish second at the 59th Janusz Kusocinski Memorial Meet in Szczecin, reports CMC. Smith, 28, a two-time Olympian, recently won at a meet in France, and placed fourth in the Czech Republic. He tweeted: "Just ...

Coaching in China big challenge for Eriksson

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 04:20:02 -0400

It certainly recalled the memory of Sven-Goran Eriksson from the 'good old days' in Italy and England, when he was surrounded by journalists and fans. "This will be one of the biggest challenges in my coaching career," Eriksson, who took rein of the Chinese Super League side Guangzhou Fuli 12 days ago, made his debut speech here Monday, reports Xinhua. "I've learnt that football is very ...

Romeo Beckhams fashion sense wows Christopher Bailey

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 04:20:02 -0400

Designer Christopher Bailey says it was a dream to work with 10-year-old Romeo Beckham, who he feels has an impeccable fashion sense. Victoria and David Beckham's son Romeo made his modelling debut for Burberry's spring-summer 2013 advertisement campaign. The shoot also starred supermodels Cara Delevingne and Edie Campbell. "He was an absolute dream to work with. Honestly, he is the sweetest, ...

Worlds first paediatric hand transplant program begins

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 04:10:01 -0400

A US hospital has announced that it is looking for kids for the world's first paediatric hand transplant program. Boston Children's Hospital said in a statement on its website that the research-based program will offer bi-lateral hand transplants for children living without two functioning hands, reported Xinhua. Potential subjects for the hand transplant program will be children who are over ...

Pattinson seeking solace plans holiday with family

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 04:00:03 -0400

Actor Robert Pattinson has reportedly decided to spend some memorable time with family and rented a house in Canada for two months. The 26-year-old, who is nursing his broken heart post his split from Kristen Stewart, will stay in the swanky pad with his family members, reports dailystar.co.uk. "Rob is renting a house in Bloor West Village in Toronto for July and August. He needs time away from ...

Shaolin temple goes global

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 04:00:03 -0400

The Shaolin Temple, known as the cradle of Chinese kung fu, is preparing to stage its first cultural festival in the US as part of efforts to expand its global clout. The first North American Shaolin Cultural Festival is scheduled to be held from Oct 8 to 14 in Los Angeles, according to Shi Yongxin, abbot of the Buddhist temple in the city of Dengfeng in central China's Henan province, reported ...

Marc Jacobs once termed Cara Delevingne a dwarf

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 04:00:03 -0400

Actress-model Cara Delevingne hasn't always seen eye-to-eye with fashion designer Marc Jacobs because he once reportedly banned her from his show by calling the 5' 9" model a "dwarf". But now they are good friends. Jacobs banned the 20-year-old from appearing in his autumn-winter 2012-13 shows because he thought she was too short and looked odd amongst other models. Katie Grand, who helps ...

South Koreas producer prices fall

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 04:00:02 -0400

Producer prices in South Korea fell for three straight months due to lower prices of farm goods and crude oil, central bank data showed Tuesday. The producer price index (PPI), a barometer of future consumer price inflation, declined 0.4 percent in May from a month earlier, keeping its downward trend for the third consecutive month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). The continued decline ...

Structural doping in Dutch cycling Dutch minister

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 04:00:02 -0400

The majority of the Dutch professional cyclists used doping at the end of the 1990s and at the beginning of this century, says a committee headed by former Dutch justice minister Winnie Sorgdrager. The Anti-Doping Approach Committee presented its findings in The Hague Monday after a six-month investigation into the doping culture in Dutch cycling, which was started after revelations in ...

Chinas FDI edges up

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 04:00:02 -0400

China's actual use of foreign capital in May stood at $9.26 billion, up 0.29 percent year on year, the commerce ministry said Tuesday. This is the fourth straight monthly increase since February, when China reported a FDI recovery after declining for eight consecutive months since June of 2012, reported Xinhua. During the first five months, the inbound investment increased 1.03 percent from a ...

Russian judoka commits suicide

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 03:50:02 -0400

Russian judo champion Elena Ivashchenko committed suicide because of her failure during the London Olympics. Russian judo officials said Monday that Elena Ivashchenko, 28, a four-time European champion (in 2007, 2009, 2011, 2012), jumped from a 15th floor in the Siberian city of Tyumen, Saturday, reports Xinhua. "Her depression started after her defeat at the Olympic Games. She really punished ...

Schalke signs midfielder Clemens

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 03:50:02 -0400

Germany Under-21 international Christian Clemens has joined Schalke till 2017. The 21-year-old former Cologne midfielder put pen-to-paper on a four-year deal following medical check-up, reports Xinhua. "Christian Clemens is an Under-21 player with enormous potential. We are pleased that we were able to bind a German talent for the long term. He is fast, has a strong shot and is offensively ...

Norwegian Elyounoussi joins Hoffenheim

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 03:50:02 -0400

Norwegian international of Moroccan descent Tarik Elyounoussi has moved from Rosenborg to Hoffenheim until 2017. The striker has scored 49 goals in 149 appearances in Norway since 2005. In 2013, he scored 12 goals in 22 games to lead the list of goalscorers in the Norwegian professional league, the Tippeligaen, reports Xinhua. The 25-year-old arrival is, since 2008, part of the Norway national ...

Protests wont interfere with Confederations Cup

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 03:50:01 -0400

Brazil will not allow anti-government protests to mar the Confederations Cup being hosted here, Sports Minister Aldo Rebelo said. Rebelo said Monday that Brazil must show the world that it is a democratic country but also that it can guarantee the order needed to undertake such events, reports Xinhua. "We will not allow any of these protests to get in the way of the events we have committed to ...

Corinthians await Tottenham bid for Paulinho

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 03:10:01 -0400

Corinthians says it is expecting English Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur to make an offer for Brazil international midfielder Paulinho. The Brazilian club's deputy director Duilio Monteiro Alves said Monday that all offers for the 24-year-old would be considered during the European summer transfer window, reports Xinhua. "We know that Tottenham are interested but there is nothing official ...

India becomes Kenyas largest Asian trading partner

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 03:00:01 -0400

India, which has a thriving diaspora in Kenya estimated at 100,000, became the East African nation's biggest trading partner in Asia in 2012, surpassing China, a government document says. India exported to Kenya goods worth $240 million, way ahead of Asia's biggest economy China, which exported goods valued at $148 million.The figure represents a growth of around 30 percent when compared to ...

Avril Lavigne balancing work wedding plans

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 02:50:02 -0400

Singer Avril Lavigne, who is engaged to Chad Kroeger, says she is trying to divide her time between work and wedding plans. Lavigne, 27, will soon release her yet-to-be-titled fifth studio collection, and is enjoying every moment with her singer beau. "I've already been planning the wedding. It's just more meetings than usual, more emails, more phone calls. But it's been good," thesun.co.uk ...

Plastic bottle drinks may raise cancer risk in womb

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 02:50:02 -0400

A US study has suggested expectant women drinking from plastic bottles could be increasing their unborn child's chances of developing cancer later in life. Researchers at the the University of Illinois, who conducted their study on mice, showed how exposure to Bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical commonly found in plastic water bottles and soup cans, in the womb could increase prostate cancer risk, ...

We want to win hearts says Tahiti coach

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 02:50:01 -0400

An emotional Tahiti coach Eddy Etaeta, after a 1-6 thrashing by Nigeria, said his team hoped to "win the hearts" of Brazilian fans during the Confederations Cup. The Pacific island minnows lost their opening Group B match against Nigeria Monday, but they were clearly the team of choice among neutral observers at the Mineirao stadium, reports Xinhua. The reigning Oceania Nations Cup champions ...

Confederations Cup Oduamadi hat-trick sinks Tahiti

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 02:30:02 -0400

Nnamdi Oduamadi scored a hat-trick as Nigeria crushed a spirited Tahiti 6-1 in their Confederations Cup football Group B clash here at the Mineirao stadium. Uwa Echiejile opened the scoring Monday with a deflected long-range drive before Oduamadi danced around two defenders and coolly chipped over goalkeeper Xavier Samin, reports Xinhua. Oduamadi, AC Milan winger, then doubled his tally by ...

US immigration chief to resign

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 02:30:02 -0400

The director of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), John Morton, said Monday that he will leave his post next month to work in the private sector after four years at the head of the agency. "I am extremely proud of what we have accomplished together during that time and look with awe on the incredible progress ICE has made as an agency," he said in a letter directed to ICE employees. ...

US Cuba to discuss renewal of direct mail service

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 02:30:02 -0400

The US and Cuba will discuss this week the possibility of re-establishing direct mail, suspended 50 years ago, a State Department spokesperson told EFE Monday. Talks of a "technical" nature will take place Tuesday and Wednesday in Washington among officials of the State Department, the US Postal Service and the Cuban government, said the spokesperson. "We think that re-establishing a direct ...

Jennifer Lopez signs up for film on Chilean miners

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 02:20:01 -0400

Jennifer Lopez is the latest addition to the cast of "The 33", a film based on the story of survival of the miners trapped for more than two months below ground after a mine collapse in northern Chile, The Hollywood Reporter said Monday. J.Lo joins a cast led by Spanish actor Antonio Banderas, who plays Mario Sepulveda, the charismatic miner who earned the nickname "Super Mario" during the ...

Goya drawing to be auctioned off in London

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 01:50:02 -0400

The Goya drawing "Si yerras los tiras!" (If you miss the mark!), a political allegory in which the figure may be King Ferdinand VII, will be sold at auction July 2 in London, Christie's said. The drawing, which is expected to sell for between 1.2 million and 1.7 million euros ($1.6 million to $2.2 million), is from the artist's "Black Border Album" and belongs to a private collector. The album ...

Mexico to discuss deals worth $150 mn at Paris Air Show

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 01:50:02 -0400

The governor of the Mexican state of Queretaro said Monday that he planned to discuss seven aviation investment projects worth $150 million with different companies during the 2013 Paris Air Show. Jose Calzada said in a press conference at the Le Bourget exhibition centre that he had about 15 meetings planned with aviation and aerospace companies. The governor will be meeting with Canada's ...

Gisele Bndchen unveils new lingerie line

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 01:50:02 -0400

Brazilian model Gisele Bndchen unveiled her new line of lingerie in Sao Paulo over the weekend, with its seductively vibrant colours, delicate lace, transparencies and a wink at eroticism. Her new line, Gisele Bndchen Intimates, was shown at the Brazil Fashion Salon that opened Sunday and where fashionistas can see the styles of bikinis and lingerie that Sao Paulo designers have come up with for ...

Half of NASAs new astronaut class are women

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 01:50:02 -0400

NASA announced Monday that it has selected its first new contingent of potential astronauts in four years and half of them are women. The four men and four women who were chosen from among more than 6,100 applicants "will receive a wide array of technical training at space centers around the globe to prepare for missions to low-Earth orbit, an asteroid and Mars", NASA said in a statement. The ...

18 Ibero-American films to be screened in Shanghai

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 01:50:01 -0400

Ibero-American films will not compete in the Shanghai International Film Festival, or SIFF, but will be represented with 18 films in Spanish, Portuguese, Galician, Basque and Catalan, among the more than 300 selected for event. Latin presence will therefore show a sharp drop from 2012, up to now the biggest showing by the Ibero-American film industry, when it had two movies competing - Spain's ...

Colombian bill bans use of wild animals in circuses

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 01:50:01 -0400

Elephants, lions, bears, tigers, monkeys and other wild animals will no longer be permitted in circuses in Colombia under a bill approved by Congress. The legislation covers "native and exotic" animals, which account for a small percentage of the circus acts in the country. Circus industry executives, however, have expressed opposition to the bill, calling it unfair. "In Colombia, there are ...

Three take-aways from this week’s G8 summit

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 00:19:45 -0400

The G8 leaders, flanked by two European leaders: from left, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Russian President Vladimir Putin, British Prime Minister David Cameron, U.S. President Barack Obama, French President Francois Hollande, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta ...

Budgets pass in all six school districts holding revotes

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 00:14:45 -0400

Photo credit: Johnny Milano | North Babylon's School District holds a revote after its proposed budget failed the first time. North Babylon is one of the few school districts that are proposing the same exact budget again, without any modifications. (June 18 ...

Boy charged over wrestling death

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 00:11:03 -0400

A 13-year-old boy has been charged with second-degree murder over the death of his five-year-old half-sister after investigators said he told them he repeatedly struck her with wrestling moves imitated from ...

Acclaimed war correspondent dies

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 00:11:02 -0400

Pentagon ceremony for his subsequent retirement in 2010, Gen McChrystal made light of the episode in his farewell address. The four-star general warned his comrades in arms: "I have stories on all of you, photos of many, and I know a Rolling Stone reporter."When he died, Hastings was also a contributing editor at Rolling Stone, where managing editor Will Dana was quoted as saying ...

Assange vows to stay in Embassy over US arrest fears

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 00:04:07 -0400

Barrister to run Assange's national senate campaign WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange says he will not leave the sanctuary of the Ecuadorian Embassy in London even if Sweden stops pursuing sexual assault claims against him because he fears arrest on the order of the United States. In an interview with Reuters and others to mark the one-year anniversary of taking refuge in the cramped ...

Bankers Should Face Jail Terms Report Says

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:59:37 -0400

A new criminal offence punishing bankers for "reckless misconduct" while running their institutions is the centrepiece of proposals unveiled by a group of MPs and peers aimed at reforming the industry. The Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards (PCBS), which was set up after last summer's Libor-manipulation scandal led to Barclays being fined £290m, said in its ...

Australian jailed for life for rape murder

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:56:48 -0400

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) -- A serial sex offender was sentenced to life in prison on Wednesday for raping and murdering an Irish immigrant while free on parole after previous convictions for raping five ...

Adelaides war of religious words reaches a new height

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:52:14 -0400

The gentle pace of Adelaide's Rundle Mall resembled the more extreme pockets of Speaker's Corner in London's Hyde Park as evangelical preachers harangued shoppers who didn't love Jesus enough, threatening extra hell-fire for the sins of women, homosexuals and Muslims. The group was silenced after a year-long spectacle when the high court ruled to uphold a council by-law ...

Michael Hastings The Runaway General journalist dies in car crash

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:52:13 -0400

The award-winning journalist and war correspondent Michael Hastings - who wrote a Rolling Stone story that brought down a top US general - has died in a car accident in Los Angeles.Hastings won a Polk award for magazine reporting for his Rolling Stone cover report The Runaway General. The story was credited with ending ...

Asia business sentiment rises in second quarter global growth risk still dominates

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:51:19 -0400

SEOUL (Reuters) - Asia's top companies have become more optimistic about their business outlook with the retail and shipping industries rebounding sharply in the second quarter of 2013, the latest Thomson Reuters/INSEAD Asia Business Sentiment Survey ...

Google asks FISA court to lift gag order on NSA requests

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:49:15 -0400

WASHINGTON Google on Tuesday sharply challenged the federal government's gag order on its Internet surveillance program, citing what it described as a First Amendment right to divulge how many requests it receives from the government for data about its customers in the name of national security. The move came in a legal motion filed in the secretive Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court ...

Taliban will talk peace with U.S. and Afghan officials

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:13:22 -0400

New soldiers of the Afghan National Army attend their graduation ceremony in Kabul. NATO plans to end all combat operations in Afghanistan by December of next year. (Rahmat Gul/The Associated ...

Little clarity on financial transparency

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:13:21 -0400

A trader looks at his screens on the Unicredit Bank trading floor in downtown Milan June 13, 2013. World shares fell and the dollar slumped on Thursday as a sell-off on global financial markets accelerated on concerns over whether central banks will continue the stimulus they have come to rely on. (ALESSANDRO ...

On Syria leaders didn’t agree on much

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:13:20 -0400

For Syrian rebels fighting to overthrow the regime of Bashar al-Assad, Tuesday's communiqu issued by the Group of Eight meeting in Northern Ireland was hugely disappointing; as it was for the four million internally displaced civilians in Syria and the 1.6 million people who have sought refuge in neighbouring ...

On paying ransoms an agreement in principle

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:13:20 -0400

For years, Britain has quietly grumbled about governments that pay ransom to save the lives of their citizens. British officials privately complained that the payments were undermining the British policy of never negotiating ransom. But now Prime Minister David Cameron has persuaded the other G8 leaders to take a strong and united stand against ransoms for the first time.The statement issued by ...

Malaysia budget airport launch pushed to May 2014

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:12:00 -0400

Airport workers unload passenger baggage from an AirAsia Bhd airplane at the Low Cost Carrier Terminal in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Feb 25, 2009. Malaysia's airport operator says the launch of a new airport for budget carriers has been further delayed by 10 months to May 2014 due to a setback in construction. -- FILE PHOTO: ...

Christopher Loebs mom makes allegations against Suffolk Police Chief James Burke

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:07:58 -0400

In Suffolk Cnty exit ramp closed on The Northern St Pkwy EB at Rt-110/X40 In Suffolk Cnty exit ramp closed on The Northern St Pkwy EB at ...

Attacker jailed for Meagher murder

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:04:30 -0400

A serial sex offender has been sentenced to life in prison for the rape and murder of an Irish woman that outraged Australia's second-largest ...

PM faces MPs questions on G8 deals

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:04:29 -0400

Canada , Japan and Russia amounted to a "road map" for Syria's future.He also argued that pledges on tax avoidance and evasion had the potential to "rewrite the rules". The statement promised to "fight the scourge of tax evasion" by ensuring automatic exchange of tax information, making clear who owns companies and where they generate profits.To tackle ...

Obama to invoke call of history in Berlin speech

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:00:09 -0400

Barack Obama will on Wednesday invoke the Cold War history of German-US solidarity, on a long-awaited first visit to Berlin as president, but will face sharp questions on US spy snooping ...

Bolivian Girl Mauled by Dog to Fly to U.S. for Help

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:50:53 -0400

LA PAZ, Bolivia -- A 4-year-old Bolivian girl who was unconscious for nearly three weeks after being mauled in the face and body by a Rottweiler is awake and ready to fly to Boston for reconstructive surgery, a doctor said ...

Julian Assange attacks perverted Gillard government

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:44:49 -0400

Julian Assange has delivered a scathing attack on the Australian government in an interview marking one year since he walked into the Ecuadorean embassy in London and sought asylum.Assange told the press he hoped the predicted Coalition win in September would clean out the Labor party and prime ...

Will anyone drop the ball at the Canberra mid-winter bash

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:44:48 -0400

It’s usually a night when politics is put aside for good times and glamour, but there have been occasions when tempers have frayed at the press gallery’s annual mid-winter ball, to be held in Canberra on Wednesday night. With Labor’s leadership tensions turned up (Spinal Tap-style) to 11 and just five sitting days left for the tumultuous 43rd parliament, this year’s event ...

3 suspects arrested in modern slavery case

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:20:16 -0400

>Editor's note: For more information on this story, check out CNN affiliates WKYC, WOIO and WJW.(CNN) -- A mentally disabled woman and her daughter were held in an Ohio apartment crowded with people and animals for more than a year, forced to perform manual labor and threatened with dogs and snakes to keep them compliant, authorities said Tuesday. Federal prosecutors said the people accused of ...

Shockwaves continue after Greece pulls plug on public TV

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:07:32 -0400

An employee of the Greece state broadcaster ERT gives instructions in front of monitors in the control room at the television station's headquarters in Athens, on Tuesday, June 18, 2013. State TV channels in Greece remained off-air Tuesday as the political storm over the future of public broadcaster ERT rages on despite a court ruling that the prime minister's decision to pull the plug ...

Conditions subhuman

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:02:25 -0400

Conditions subhuman

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:02:25 -0400

Bellone tweaks plan to merge Suffolk comptroller treasurer jobs

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:02:20 -0400

Photo credit: Newsday / Ed Betz | Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone talks about the county's budget problems and solutions during a press conference in Hauppauge. (April 2, ...

Voters head to polls for school budget revotes

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:02:20 -0400

Chef describes Jacksons grief

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:58:58 -0400

Michael Jackson 's personal chef has described for jurors the home lives of the pop superstar's children during the final months of the singer's life and their continuing grief over their father's death nearly four years ...

Aboriginal humour the flip side of tragedy is comedy | Larissa Behrendt

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:58:19 -0400

Eddy McGuire’s comments about Adam Goodes , the most frequent response I received from my Aboriginal friends was: "well, you’ve got to laugh". To an outsider, this might be interpreted as simply laughing the incident off – but there is something very serious about laughing in this context. It is a powerful antidote to the trauma, harm and hurt that comes with racism. ...

EU Lebanon discuss Syrian refugee issue

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:57:48 -0400

Visiting EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton on Tuesday discussed with Lebanese officials the plight of Syrian refugees in the country and urged "a political solution to the conflict in Syria."According to a statement, Ashton said after a meeting with Lebanese President Michel Suleiman that "de-escalating tensions in Lebanon is a priority."Ashton said "any country ...

Obama Has Plans to Cut U.S. Nuclear Arsenal if Russia Reciprocates

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:53:23 -0400

WASHINGTON ...

How to hide your data from the NSA

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:53:15 -0400

>Editor's note: Doug Gross covers consumer technology and the Web for CNN.com. Follow his updates on Twitter or add him to your Circles on Google+.(CNN) -- Let's face it: Most of us don't e-mail, tweet, text or post anything worthy of clandestine scrutiny. But having concerns about NSA cybersnooping doesn't mean we must surrender all privacy -- what's left of it -- in our day-to-day online ...

The Taliban Agree to Talk

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:51:29 -0400

The Taliban, more used to lobbing mortars and laying improvised explosive devices on the battlefields of Afghanistan, used a televised address in Doha, Qatar, on Tuesday ...

Proper Scrutiny for Drug Settlements

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:51:29 -0400

The Federal Trade Commission has been battling for years to end a devious tactic used by some drug companies to pay competitors to delay putting cheaper generic versions of their brand-name drugs on the market. The tactic, known as pay-for-delay or reverse payments, results in higher costs for ...

Details on Spying Not More Assurances

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:51:27 -0400

The president is right that many Americans are nervous about what they have recently learned, and his assurances will have to go much further to allay those fears. His promises lacked specificity, and some of his descriptions of domestic spy work verged on the ...

Lawmakers in Albany Should Stay Put

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:51:25 -0400

After another run of indictments and arrests of public officials, New York's lawmakers are planning to leave Albany this week without doing anything about the scandals around them. The list of unattended priorities left for next year is long and shameful. And at the top is campaign finance reform -- specifically a system of public financing that would encourage more candidates to run for ...

Jill Meagher Killer Sentenced To Life In Prison

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:46:16 -0400

A man has been jailed for life for the murder of Irishwoman Jill Meagher in Melbourne, Australia. Adrian Ernest Bayley, who had pleaded guilty to raping and murdering the 29-year-old on September 22 last year, was told he will not be able to apply for parole for at least 35 years. The 41-year-old was sentenced to life imprisonment for the killing, plus 15 years for the ...

Especially grim encephalitis toll feared in India

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:42:57 -0400

In this Tuesday, April 2, 2013 photo, an Indian child in a pink shirt undergoes treatment for encephalitis at a hospital in Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh state, India. Encephalitis is sweeping through northern India, killing at least 118 children in what officials worry could become the deadliest outbreak in nearly a decade. (AP Photo/Biswajeet ...

Putin may allow removal of Assad

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:38:45 -0400

Vladimir Putin with G8 leaders. The Russian leader has agreed to let President Assad of Syria go on certain conditions. Photograph: Stefan Rousseau/AFP/Getty ...

House Republicans pass bill to criminalise some abortions

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:38:42 -0400

abortion on a woman after 20 weeks of pregnancy.Although the White House has promised to veto the legislation in the unlikely event it passes the Senate and campaigners argue it would be unconstitutional anyway, the symbolic vote served as a reminder of the strength of anti-abortion sentiment ...

Adrian Bayley jailed for life for murder of Jill Meagher

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:38:41 -0400

Adrian Bayley has been sentenced to life in prison, with a 35-year non-parole period, for the rape and murder of Jill Meagher. Judge Geoffrey Nettle said that Bayley subjected Meagher to a "savage and degrading" assault in the Melbourne suburb of Brunswick on 22 September last year and that his multiple previous attacks on women demanded that he be sent to prison for a lengthy period. ...

Afghan forces take control of Nato security following news of peace talks

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:38:39 -0400

Afghan national forces will lead all military operations in the country from 19 June, President Hamid Karzai has said. Photograph: Xinhua/Landov/Barcroft ...

WikiLeaks Assange fears U.S. says will stay in London embassy

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:37:36 -0400

1 of 6. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange waves from a window with Ecuador's Foreign Affairs Minister Ricardo Patino (R) at Ecuador's embassy in central London June 16, ...

Protests Widen as Brazilians Chide Leaders

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:07:51 -0400

...

Ottawa names former Conservatives to Canada-U.S. water agency

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:00:12 -0400

The federal government has appointed two former Conservative politicians to fill vacancies at the International Joint Commission, a key bilateral institution that oversees water that Canada shares with the United States.Benot Bouchard and Gordon Walker were each appointed to four-year terms, which began earlier this month. The Commission's current chair, Joseph Comuzzi, remains in that role ...

Islamists Press Blasphemy Cases in a New Egypt

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:58:07 -0400

DEIR EL GABRAWI, Egypt ...

7-Eleven stores reopen after federal raids

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:55:07 -0400

Photo credit: Daniel Brennan | An exterior view of the 7-Eleven in Port Jefferson Station on Old Town Road at 347, which remains open for business after a raid by federal agents. (June 18, ...

Heavy turnout in Lattingtown election

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:55:07 -0400

Photo credit: Danielle Finkelstein | Left, Lattingtown Mayor Clarence F. Michalis, who will face his first challenger in four decades, Nicholas DellaFera, right. (June 4, ...

Major UK Supermarkets Launch New Food Labels

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:45:41 -0400

Major supermarkets and food manufacturers are introducing a new labelling system to help people make healthier choices. Until now, businesses had different labels on the front of their products to try to explain the nutritional value of meals and drinks, leading to confusion for customers. This will be replaced by a standardised system across a range of products. "It's a traffic ...

President salutes Brazil protests cities cut bus fares

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:45:08 -0400

Biggest protests in 20 years sweep Brazil President Dilma Rousseff sought to defuse a massive protest movement sweeping Brazil, acknowledging the need for better public services and more responsive governance as demonstrations continued in some cities around the country. Speaking on Tuesday, the morning after more than 200,000 Brazilians marched in over a half-dozen cities, Rousseff said her ...

Abe the first serving Japanese PM to visit Ireland since independence

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:42:37 -0400

The prime minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe, having a meeting with British prime minister David Cameron at the G8 summit in the North. Photograph: Stefan Rousseau/PA ...

Two ghosts will loom large over Obama’s highly anticipated speech at Brandenberg gate today

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:42:36 -0400

John F Kennedy , half a century after his "Ich bin ein Berliner" speech promised US solidarity to West Berliners living on the chilliest front in the cold war. His words - grammatical error and all (the "ein" was superfluous) - were enough to banish lingering resentment some Berliners felt that the US had abandoned them two years earlier when the Berlin Wall was ...

Leaders set out plan to stamp out tax-evasion

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:42:36 -0400

Citing continued economic uncertainty in the world, the leaders of the US, Britain, Germany, Russia, Canada, Japan, France and Italy pledged action to support demand and resolved to secure their public finances and reform their economies to boost ...

More refugees in 2012 than for 20 years says UN

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:42:35 -0400

United Nations refugee agency . More than 45.2 million people were displaced in 2012, almost three million more than in the previous year. War in five countries - Afghanistan, Somalia, Iraq, Syria and Sudan - was the reason 55 per cent of those displaced were forced to flee . The conflict in Syria prompted the biggest exodus, of 647,000 people, which was the highest number fleeing since the ...

Governor of Maryland to meet Taoiseach during Irish visit

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:42:35 -0400

Martin O'Malley: "There is among the Irish, by and large in America, a keen and heartfelt awareness that we are a nation of nations and we have all been strangers in a foreign land at one point." Photograph: David ...

Bulgaria in breach of human rights convention over care home deaths in 1997

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:42:33 -0400

The European Court of Human Rights has found Bulgaria in breach of the European Convention on Human Rights after 15 children and young adults with special needs died in a state care home there. The children, who had severe mental and physical disabilities, died from a shortage of food and the effects of cold as well as a shortage of medicines and basic necessities. The case was taken by the ...

Internet companies agree to do more to combat online child pornography

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:42:33 -0400

Maria Miller: says the Internet Watch Foundation has been asked to search for illegal and abusive images and block them. Photograph: Rosie Hallam/Getty ...

Par for the course

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:42:32 -0400

Lough Erne - the leaders were knocking balls off the second or third tee rather than the first, with the heavy lifting par fives with their treacherous greens - reaching agreements - still far ahead. The rest of the course remains strewn with deep bunkers and water ...

Lough Erne G8 plan could spell trouble for Ireland’s corporate tax regime

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:42:32 -0400

"For the Taoiseach it was an image to die for. There's nothing a leader likes more than proximity to more powerful leaders." US president Barack Obama, British prime minister David Cameron and Taoiseach Enda Kenny take a walk at the G8 summit at Lough Erne in Fermanagh. Photograph: Laura Hutton/Photocall ...

Cameron claims credit for seven-point plan on Syria

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:42:31 -0400

Vladimir Putin denied he was isolated at the summit on the violence in Syria and stood by his claim that supplying weapons for any one side in the civil war would only lead to more violence. He defended Moscow's role in the conflict to date and did not rule out further military contacts with the Assad ...

Stars mark Israeli leaders 90th

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:42:26 -0400

Hollywood superstars have joined Israeli and global leaders and local celebrities to honour president Shimon Peres for his forthcoming 90th birthday, reflecting world respect for one of the country's peace ...

Video FBI release footage of Times Square Bombing

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:42:24 -0400

Thousands of demonstrators have flooded into a square in Brazil's economic hub, Sao Paulo, for the latest in a historic wave of protests against the state of public transport, schools and other public ...

Irish Lawmakers Expected to Approve Limited Abortion

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:34:41 -0400

DUBLIN -- The Irish Parliament is expected to legalize limited abortion before its summer break after the publication of final government proposals that would allow terminations in cases when there is a real and substantial risk to the life of the mother, including the threat of ...

World refugee increase is highest since 1999 UNHCR report shows

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:32:46 -0400

Syrian refugee children in Iraq. Australia had 0.3% of the world's refugees at the end of 2012 and 2.14% of its asylum seekers, a UNHCR report shows. Photograph: Safin Hamed/AFP/Getty ...

If Julia Gillard isnt safe from the Liberals sexism who will be | Van Badham

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:32:45 -0400

If Abbott and his comrades are prepared to reduce Gillard to a "witch" with a "big red box", how do you really think they'll treat the rest of ...

Fisa court oversight a look inside a secret and empty process | Glenn Greenwald

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:32:43 -0400

NSA 's massive domestic spying apparatus, various NSA defenders - beginning with President Obama - have sought to assure the public that this is all done under robust judicial oversight. "When it comes to telephone calls, nobody is listening to your telephone ...

Republican-led House passes bill restricting abortion

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:31:39 -0400

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday passed legislation that would ban late-term abortions, a move that could alienate women from the conservative ...

Feds Captives forced to eat dog food

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:26:43 -0400

Iran and U.S. New hope on nukes

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:26:04 -0400

>Editor's note: David Rothkopf writes regularly for CNN.com. He is CEO and editor-at-large of the FP Group, publishers of Foreign Policy magazine, and a visiting scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Follow him on Twitter.(CNN) -- It would be easy to dismiss Friday's election of Hassan Rouhani as president of Iran as little more than a sham -- a rigged election that ...

Turkeys standing man

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:23:47 -0400

>Are you there? Share your story on CNN iReport, but please remember to stay safe. Istanbul (CNN) -- Turkish protesters are giving their government the silent treatment. Hundreds of men and women stood silently Tuesday in Istanbul's Taksim Square emulating the performance artist whose quiet protest Monday night quickly gained him the nickname "Standing Man. "For more than five hours, Erdem ...

Turkeys standing man

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:23:47 -0400

Turkeys standing man

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:23:47 -0400

Turkeys standing man

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:23:47 -0400

The 5 stories you want us to cover

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:19:05 -0400

>Editor's note: John D. Sutter is a columnist for CNN Opinion and head of Change the List. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook or Google+. E-mail him at ctl@cnn.com.(CNN) -- Remember that scene at the end of that Facebook Movie ("The Social Network") when Mark Zuckerberg's character sits alone at a computer screen hitting the refresh button over and over again -- stuck in a loop of anxiety and ...

Brazil lawmakers OK bill for treatment of gays

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:17:24 -0400

BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) -- A Brazilian congressional human rights committee on Thursday approved legislation that would allow psychologists to treat homosexuality as a disorder or ...

Defense officials say four US troops killed in Afghanistan

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:45:38 -0400

Officials said Tuesday the four were killed by indirect fire, likely a mortar or rocket, but they had no other details. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to provide details on the deaths. The attack comes as US and allied forces formally handed over control of the country's security to the Afghan army and police in a ceremony in Kabul. The ...

Fiji offers more than 500 troops to Golan force

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:41:51 -0400

Fiji has offered more than 500 soldiers to the UN Golan Heights peacekeeping force after several countries withdrew because of the spillover from the Syria conflict, diplomats said on ...

Girls Guides drop religious reference but pledge to self and the Queen

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:36:45 -0400

For decades, Brownies and Girl Guides have promised to "love my God," and "serve the Queen and my country". But now, in a triumph for secularists, the organisation has decided to drop references to the deity - and the nation - from the oath taken by ...

Google challenges US surveillance gagging order

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:36:43 -0400

Google has asked the US Foreign Intelligence Surveillance (FISA) court to allow it to publish details of the number of data requests made by a secretive body, invoking the first amendment in a legal challenge that is aimed at easing concern among users following recent revelations regarding the activities of the National Security ...

New York regulators fine Deloitte $10m over StanChart

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:36:42 -0400

Nikhil Kumar is The Independent's New York correspondent. He was formerly assistant editor on the foreign desk and has also done a variety of jobs on the city desk, where he wrote about markets, commodities and other business and economics ...

Young Face Decades Of Saving To Buy Homes

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:34:38 -0400

Young people trapped by high property prices face having to save for up to 30 years before they can afford a deposit on their first home, a charity has said. Research commissioned by housing ...

Arrests made in slavery case

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:31:42 -0400

Amanda Knox judges list reasons for rerun

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:27:46 -0400

Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito of the murder of British student Meredith Kercher was based on a case littered with "multiple shortcomings, contradictions and ...

Labor leadership stalemate - politics live blog

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:27:33 -0400

AEST Good morning and welcome to our live coverage from Canberra. The consensus from the commentariat this morning is Labor’s leadership battle will push out into next week - but that hasn’t stopped wall to wall coverage. I wonder how the Prime Minister felt this morning, driving out of The Lodge to work. Another day in paradise. That's our first image on the blog this ...

Rand Paul accuses James Clapper of lying to Congress over NSA suveillance

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:27:30 -0400

The pressure on the Obama administration’s top intelligence official, James Clapper, increased Tuesday when a popular libertarian US senator said he had lied to Congress and suggested he consider his postion. "The director of national intelligence, in March, did directly lie to Congress, which is against the law," said Rand Paul, a Kansas Republican who ...

Animal Kingdom Falls Flat at Ascot

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:02:08 -0400

ASCOT, England ...