WORLD News, Jul 19, 2011

China's heir apparent pledges tough line on Tibet Mon,18 Jul 2011 11:40 PM PDT Reuters - BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese Vice-President Xi Jinping vowed on Tuesday to crack down on separatist forces led by the Dalai Lama, suggesting that China's heir apparent to the presidency will not ease Beijing's hardline stance toward the region. Full Story

In liberalized Greek workplace, dancers swirl freely Mon,18 Jul 2011 11:15 PM PDT Reuters - ATHENS (Reuters) - If you want to be a dancer in Greece, you can now swirl freely into your new career. But if your heart is set on opening a pharmacy, things are not that easy. Full Story

China blames "terrorists" for attack in Xinjiang: report Mon,18 Jul 2011 11:08 PM PDT Reuters - BEIJING (Reuters) - A clash at a police station that left at least four people dead in western China's restive Xinjiang region was "an organized terrorist attack," a government official was quoted saying in state media on Tuesday. Full Story

Pakistani workers of U.S. aid agency feared kidnapped Mon,18 Jul 2011 10:12 PM PDT Reuters - QUETTA, Pakistan (Reuters) - Eight Pakistani employees of a U.S.-based aid organization are missing and feared kidnapped in Pakistan's volatile southwest bordering Afghanistan, a senior Pakistani government official said on Tuesday. Full Story

China blames "terrorists" for attack in Xinjiang: report Mon,18 Jul 2011 09:53 PM PDT Reuters - BEIJING (Reuters) - A clash at a police station that left at least four people dead in western China's restive Xinjiang region was "an organised terrorist attack," a government official was quoted saying in state media on Tuesday. Full Story

Murdochs face questions in UK parliament Mon,18 Jul 2011 08:24 PM PDT Reuters - LONDON (Reuters) - News Corp Chief Executive Rupert Murdoch and his son James face questions from parliament on Tuesday in a phone-hacking scandal that has rocked Britain's establishment right up to Prime Minister David Cameron. Full Story

Murdoch has board backing Mon,18 Jul 2011 07:29 PM PDT Reuters - NEW YORK (Reuters) - News Corp independent directors are fully behind Rupert Murdoch, a board member told Reuters on Monday, as his iron grip on his vast media empire came under question because of the hacking scandal that already has consumed his London newspaper company. Full Story

Assad loyalists kill 10 in attacks in Homs Mon,18 Jul 2011 05:57 PM PDT Reuters - AMMAN (Reuters) - Syrian forces and militiamen loyal to President Bashar al-Assad killed 10 people in attacks on residential districts in Homs on Monday, the Local Coordination Committees activist group said. Full Story

U.S. urges Gaddafi to go as rebels claim oil town Mon,18 Jul 2011 05:14 PM PDT Reuters - TRIPOLI (Reuters) - Libyan and U.S. officials met face-to-face, but while Tripoli said it was seeking talks with no preconditions, Washington said it delivered a clear message: Muammar Gaddafi must go. Full Story

Egyptian PM taken to hospital, new cabinet delayed Mon,18 Jul 2011 04:29 PM PDT Reuters - CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian Prime Minister Essam Sharaf was taken to hospital because of blood pressure problems on Monday, and the swearing in of a much-changed cabinet was delayed. Full Story

Assad loyalists kill 10 in attacks in Homs Mon,18 Jul 2011 03:46 PM PDT Reuters - AMMAN (Reuters) - Syrian forces and militiamen loyal to President Bashar al-Assad killed 10 people in attacks on residential districts in Homs on Monday, the Local Coordination Committees activist group said. Full Story

Libya says ready for talks but rejects preconditions Mon,18 Jul 2011 03:34 PM PDT Reuters - TRIPOLI (Reuters) - Libya's government said on Monday it had held talks with U.S. officials and welcomed discussions but only without preconditions. Full Story

Libya denies rebel victory claim in Brega oil town Mon,18 Jul 2011 01:57 PM PDT Reuters - MISRATA, Libya (Reuters) - Rebel forces have routed most of Muammar Gaddafi's troops in the Libyan oil town of Brega in the biggest boost of their campaign in weeks, spokesmen said on Monday. The government denied the claim. Full Story

UK phone-hacking whistleblower found dead: reports Mon,18 Jul 2011 01:38 PM PDT Reuters - LONDON (Reuters) - A former journalist who told the New York Times that phone hacking at Rupert Murdoch's now defunct News of the World was more extensive than the paper had acknowledged at the time, has been found dead, media reported on Monday. Full Story

Tunisian leader says protesters aim to spread chaos Mon,18 Jul 2011 12:32 PM PDT Reuters - TUNIS (Reuters) - Tunisia's prime minister on Monday accused protesters who held a wave of demonstrations over the weekend of plotting to destabilize the country, six months after the revolution that inspired the Arab Spring. Full Story

Pakistan Taliban release video showing forces' execution Mon,18 Jul 2011 12:13 PM PDT Reuters - ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - The Taliban have released a video showing the execution of more than a dozen Pakistani security forces in the northwest last month. Full Story

Fighting erupts in Yemeni capital, six killed Mon,18 Jul 2011 12:09 PM PDT Reuters - SANAA (Reuters) - Fighting between government forces and opposition supporters erupted in Yemen's capital Sanaa Monday, killing six people, opposition sources said. Full Story

Tumult in Egypt antiquities as Hawass swept aside Mon,18 Jul 2011 12:08 PM PDT Reuters - CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt is struggling to find a replacement to run its antiquities ministry after the flamboyant Zahi Hawass, easily recognized by his Indiana Jones-style hat, was swept aside in a cabinet reshuffle to eject the old guard. Full Story

Timeline: Invasion, surge and withdrawal; U.S. forces in Iraq Mon,18 Jul 2011 10:34 AM PDT Reuters - BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq wants the United States to supply several thousand trainers for its military but is unlikely to ask Washington to extend its troop presence beyond a year-end deadline, security and political sources said. Full Story

U.N. begins food aid airlift to rebel-held Somalia Mon,18 Jul 2011 09:57 AM PDT Reuters - NAIROBI (Reuters) - The United Nations said on Monday it had started airlifting food aid to rebel-held parts of drought-hit Somalia and that Islamist insurgents had abided by a pledge to allow relief workers free access. Full Story

Factbox: Latest developments in Libyan conflict Mon,18 Jul 2011 09:36 AM PDT Reuters - (Reuters) - Following are the latest political and military developments in the Libyan crisis. Full Story

Eleven police killed, two beheaded in Afghan violence Mon,18 Jul 2011 09:35 AM PDT Reuters - LASHKAR GAH, Afghanistan (Reuters) - Seven Afghan policemen were killed in an attack on a checkpoint in the southern city of Lashkar Gah Monday, a government spokesman said, two days before NATO-led troops hand over security control to Afghan forces. Full Story

Venezuela finance minister says Chavez to run in 2012 vote Mon,18 Jul 2011 08:42 AM PDT Reuters - CARACAS (Reuters) - There is no doubt Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez will run for re-election next year despite returning to Cuba for more treatment after cancer surgery, the OPEC nation's finance minister said on Monday. Full Story

Timeline: Life and times of Nelson Mandela Mon,18 Jul 2011 08:41 AM PDT Reuters - (Reuters) - Former South African President Nelson Mandela turned 93 Monday. Full Story

South Africa searches for Mandela's moral compass Mon,18 Jul 2011 08:37 AM PDT Reuters - JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa celebrated Nelson Mandela's 93rd birthday on Monday with songs by millions of children and calls for public service, but the nation he led out of apartheid is divided by poverty and his ANC movement seems to many to be losing its moral compass. Full Story

Pakistanis seek arrest of ex-CIA legal chief over drone attacks Mon,18 Jul 2011 08:22 AM PDT Reuters - ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Three Pakistani tribesmen filed a complaint with the police against former legal counsel of the Central Intelligence Agency's (CIA) for approving drone missile strikes that killed hundreds of people, their lawyer said Monday. Full Story

Seven Afghan police killed ahead of handover: official Mon,18 Jul 2011 08:13 AM PDT Reuters - LASHKAR GAH, Afghanistan (Reuters) - Seven Afghan policemen were killed when gunmen attacked a police checkpoint Monday in the southern city of Lashkar Gah, a government spokesman said, where NATO-led troops are due to hand over security control to Afghan forces in two days. Full Story

Israel plans hundreds more Jewish settler homes Mon,18 Jul 2011 08:11 AM PDT Reuters - JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel announced plans on Monday to build another 294 homes in two Jewish settlements in the West Bank, and the Palestinians said the move hardened their resolve to seek statehood recognition from the United Nations. Full Story

Robbers hold up guests at luxury Rio hotel Mon,18 Jul 2011 08:03 AM PDT Reuters - RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Armed men invaded one of Rio de Janeiro's most exclusive hotels and robbed guests including foreign tourists early Monday, police and hotel officials said. Full Story

French yacht from grounded flotilla sails for Gaza Mon,18 Jul 2011 07:57 AM PDT Reuters - GAZA (Reuters) - A French yacht carrying pro-Palestinian activists sailed for the Gaza Strip Monday after other ships in a flotilla that had planned to challenge Israel's blockade were grounded in Greece, organizers said. Full Story

Trial of Egypt's Mubarak may be on Red Sea: sources Mon,18 Jul 2011 07:43 AM PDT Reuters - CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's ousted president may be tried next month in the Red Sea resort where he is in hospital, not Cairo, sources said on Monday, a move that could anger protesters who say the army wants to shield its former commander. Full Story

New CIA chief Petraeus hands over command in Afghanistan Mon,18 Jul 2011 07:16 AM PDT Reuters - KABUL (Reuters) - General David Petraeus, Washington's new intelligence chief, handed over command of U.S. and NATO-led troops in Afghanistan Monday, a day after a tentative start was made to a gradual process of transferring security to Afghan forces. Full Story

In Misrata, collective effort to fight Gaddafi Mon,18 Jul 2011 07:12 AM PDT Reuters - DAFNIYA, Libya (Reuters) - The small hand-packed plastic bag appears to contain just nuts and raisins, but inside is a printed note on a strip of paper from a widows' group in Misrata for the rebels who are fighting forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi west of the city. Full Story

Russia says militant attack foiled in Moscow Mon,18 Jul 2011 07:09 AM PDT Reuters - MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia's top security official said on Monday that authorities had averted a "large terrorist attack" in the Moscow area by militants armed with homemade bombs and other weapons. Full Story

Iraq eyes U.S. trainers, not troops, after 2011 Mon,18 Jul 2011 06:11 AM PDT Reuters - BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq wants the United States to supply several thousand trainers for its military but is unlikely to ask Washington to extend its troop presence beyond a year-end deadline, Iraqi security and political sources say. Full Story

Egypt TV shows trial live to assuage anger of protests Mon,18 Jul 2011 05:36 AM PDT Reuters - CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian television showed live images Monday of the trial of one of Hosni Mubarak's ministers, the first such broadcast aimed at placating protesters who have demanded greater transparency in holding the ex-president's allies to account. Full Story

Fukushima: 554 cows fed contaminated feed shipped Mon,18 Jul 2011 05:09 AM PDT Reuters - TOKYO (Reuters) - More than 500 beef cattle that ate feed contaminated by radioactive material from Fukushima have already shipped to other parts of Japan, an initial result of inspections on the area's farms showed Monday. Full Story

U.N. court orders Thai, Cambodian troops from temple area Mon,18 Jul 2011 04:50 AM PDT Reuters - THE HAGUE (Reuters) - The highest U.N. court ordered Thailand and Cambodia Monday to pull their soldiers out of a newly defined demilitarized zone on a disputed part of their border around an ancient temple, and told them to revive talks to resolve the decades-old conflict. Full Story

Police "gun down" rioters in China's Xinjiang, at least 4 dead Mon,18 Jul 2011 04:37 AM PDT Reuters - BEIJING (Reuters) - Police in western China's restive Xinjiang on Monday "gunned down" several rioters who attacked a police station and killed at least four people, though an exile group said the incident started when police fired on peaceful protesters. Full Story

Egypt's new cabinet to be sworn in after protests Mon,18 Jul 2011 03:35 AM PDT Reuters - CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's new cabinet will be sworn in on Monday after a reshuffle that protesters said only partially met demands for deeper political and economic reforms. Full Story

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