Thirty-five killed as militants attack Pakistan checkpoint

DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan (Reuters) - Militants attacked an isolated army checkpoint in Pakistan's restive northwest on Saturday, with at least 35 people killed in the initial assault, subsequent crossfire and a rocket attack on a house, officials said. The Pakistan Taliban claimed responsibility, saying the attack was in response to a U.S. drone strike in neighboring North Waziristan...

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Singapore Conversation turns to animal welfare

SINGAPORE: A more inclusive society for animals or tougher rules for buying a pet were some suggestions animal lovers brought up at a dialogue on Saturday. It was also the first time the Singapore Conversation - an initiative to get Singaporeans to come to a consensus on the kind of future they want - focused on animal welfare. Saturday's event was jointly organised by the Agency for Animal...

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Did riots not take place during Congress rule? Rajnath Singh asks Muslims

NEW DELHI: With the BJP being constantly targeted over Gujarat riots, party president Rajnath Singh on Saturday alleged it was being defamed and maligned continuously under a "planned conspiracy".He said BJP did not believe in politics of divide and creating differences among people, and appealed the Muslim community to help removing the "widespread confusion"."BJP is defamed and maligned continuously...

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New rules aim to get rid of junk foods in schools

WASHINGTON (AP) — Most candy, high-calorie drinks and greasy meals could soon be on a food blacklist in the nation's schools.For the first time, the government is proposing broad new standards to make sure all foods sold in schools are more healthful.Under the new rules the Agriculture Department proposed Friday, foods like fatty chips, snack cakes, nachos and mozzarella sticks would be taken out...

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Gov's Handling of Sandusky Case Under Investigation

The newly-elected attorney general of Pennsylvania is going after the state's governor, Tom Corbett, who was attorney general when child sex allegations against Penn State coach Jerry Sandusky were first brought forward.Kathleen Kane, a Democrat who was sworn in as attorney general on Jan. 15, said that she will name a special prosecutor in the coming days to investigate Corbett's...

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Mexico rescue workers search for survivors after Pemex blast kills 25

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Emergency services worked into the early hours of Friday to find people trapped in rubble under state oil company Pemex's headquarters in Mexico City after an explosion that killed at least 25 people and injured more than 100. Scenes of confusion and chaos at the downtown tower dealt yet another blow to Pemex's image as Mexico's new president courts outside investment...

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Indonesia's January inflation rises to 4.57%

JAKARTA: Indonesian inflation hit a four-year high on a monthly basis in January as food prices soared following severe flooding across the country, an official said on Friday.The monsoonal downpour pushed inflation to 1.03 per cent last month from 0.54 per cent in December, while it also accelerated to 4.57 per cent year on year, from 4.3 per cent, Central Statistics Bureau chief Suryamin...

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McDonald's to pay Rs 15,000 for delivering wrong burger

NEW DELHI: Fast food giant McDonald's has been directed by a consumer forum here to pay Rs 15,000 as compensation to one of its customers for delivering a non-veg burger instead of the vegetarian one she had ordered.The South West District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum said, "By delivering her a non-vegetarian burger instead of the vegetarian burger ordered by her is a gross negligence on the...

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Hedgehog Alert! Prickly pets can carry salmonella

NEW YORK (AP) — Add those cute little hedgehogs to the list of pets that can make you sick.In the last year, 20 people were infected by a rare but dangerous form of salmonella bacteria, and one person died in January. The illnesses were linked to contact with hedgehogs kept as pets, according to a report released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Health officials on Thursday...

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Columbia Shuttle Crew Remembered 10 Years Later

Iain Clark is a teenager now. He was eight years old when his mother, Dr Laurel Clark, and six other astronauts died when the space shuttle Columbia fell apart in the skies over Texas 10 years ago today.Iain's father, Dr. Jonathon Clark, told ABC News recently that he and Iain will never really recover."There will always be a sense of loss and pain and hurt," said Clark. "I've...

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Syrian rebels make slow headway in south

AMMAN (Reuters) - The revolt against President Bashar al-Assad first flared in Deraa, but the southern border city now epitomizes the bloody stalemate gripping Syria after 22 months of violence and 60,000 dead. Jordan next door has little sympathy with Assad, but is wary of spillover from the upheaval in its bigger neighbor. It has tightened control of its 370-km (230-mile) border with...

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Myanmar's Suu Kyi picks up decade-old rights award

GWANGJU, South Korea: Myanmar's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi finally collected a human rights award in South Korea on Thursday, nearly a decade after it was conferred.The democracy icon had been awarded the Gwangju Prize for Human Rights back in 2004, but was still under house arrest at the time and unable to receive it.The prize is named for the southern South Korean city where...

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Cabinet approves Lokpal Bill amendments; Govt not serious on giving autonomy to CBI, BJP says

NEW DELHI: The amended Lokpal Bill, which delinks the central government from creation of state Lokayuktas, was on Thursday approved by the Union Cabinet, paving the way for its consideration by Parliament.The revised Bill incorporates a number of changes recommended by the Rajya Sabha select committee, including appointment of the director of prosecution by the CVC.The government, however, has not...

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Sex to burn calories? Authors expose obesity myths

Fact or fiction? Sex burns a lot of calories. Snacking or skipping breakfast is bad. School gym classes make a big difference in kids' weight.All are myths or at least presumptions that may not be true, say researchers who reviewed the science behind some widely held obesity beliefs and found it lacking.Their report in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine says dogma and fallacies are detracting...

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Obama Prods GOP on Immigration Negotiations

Jan 31, 2013 6:00am                                                                        ...

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Mursi heads to Germany on trip cut back by Egypt crisis

CAIRO/BERLIN (Reuters) - Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi flew to Germany on Wednesday to try to convince Europe of his democratic credentials, leaving behind a country in crisis after a week of violence that has killed more than 50 people. Two more protesters were shot dead before dawn near Cairo's central Tahrir Square on the seventh day of what has become the deadliest wave of unrest...

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Cricket: Warne calls for new Australia coach

SYDNEY: Test great Shane Warne on Wednesday called on Australia coach Mickey Arthur to be replaced by former New Zealand skipper Stephen Fleming days after branding the nation's cricket chiefs "muppets".The outspoken leg-spinner, who said he was "frustrated on many levels at present", praised Fleming as "the best opposition captain we played against" on his website www.shanewarne.com."I...

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Delhi HC stays non-bailable warrants against Raj Thackeray

NEW DELHI: In a relief to MNS chief Raj Thackeray, the Delhi high court on Wednesday stayed the execution of non-bailable warrants (NBWs) issued against him in 2008 for his alleged anti-Bihari remarks."The operation of the NBWs is stayed," Justice Sunil Gaur said after hearing brief arguments advanced by senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi seeking to quash the summoning orders passed in 2008 by a lower...

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Soldier with new arms determined to be independent

BALTIMORE (AP) — After weeks of round-the-clock medical care, Brendan Marrocco insisted on rolling his own wheelchair into a news conference using his new transplanted arms. Then he brushed his hair to one side.Such simple tasks would go unnoticed in most patients. But for Marrocco, who lost all four limbs while serving in Iraq, these little actions demonstrate how far he's come only six weeks after...

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NRA vs. Mark Kelly at Gun Violence Hearing

It's a showdown on guns, featuring two powerful but conflicting forces in the gun control movement -- Mark Kelly, the astronaut husband of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz.; and Wayne LaPierre, the fiery executive vice president and CEO of the National Rifle Association. The two testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee today in the first congressional hearing on gun violence...

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Army says political tussle taking Egypt to brink

CAIRO, Egypt (Reuters) - Egypt's army chief said political strife was pushing the state to the brink of collapse - a stark warning from the institution that ran the country until last year, as Cairo's first elected leader struggles to contain bloody street violence. General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, appointed by President Mohamed Mursi last year to head the military, added in a statement...

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All 20 on board Kazakh airliner "killed in crash"

ALMATY, Kazakhstan: All 20 people on board a domestic flight in Kazakhstan operated by the SCAT airline died Tuesday when their Bombardier jet crashed on approach to Almaty airport in thick fog, the airline said."Twenty people were on board -- five crew members and 15 passengers," the airline said in a statement, quoted by the Interfax news agency."According to preliminary information...

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Syrian crisis: India to pledge Rs 14 crore for humanitarian needs

NEW DELHI: Deeply concerned about the hardships and sufferings of the people of Syria as a result of unabated violence there, India will be pledging about Rs 14 crore towards humanitarian assistance in a UN conference which will be held in Kuwait on Wednesday.This assistance will be in the form of life saving drugs, food and other essential items required by the people of Syria, ministry of external...

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Soldier talks about his new arms after transplant

BALTIMORE (AP) — A soldier who lost all four limbs in an Iraq roadside bombing has two new arms following a double transplant at Johns Hopkins Hospital.Twenty-six-year-old Brendan Marrocco along with the surgeons who treated him will be at the Baltimore hospital on Tuesday to discuss the new limbs.The transplants are only the seventh double-hand or double-arm transplant ever conducted in the United...

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5 Years Later, What's New on Immigration Reform?

The announcement of a proposal for immigration reform inspired renewed excitement for some involved in the fight Monday, but other players in the debate felt a sense of déjà vu.Monday afternoon, senators introduced a framework of changes previewed over the weekend, with President Obama and a secret group from the House of Representatives expected soon to follow suit.The press...

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Egypt's Mursi declares emergency after clashes kill dozens

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi declared a month-long state of emergency in three cities on the Suez Canal, where dozens of people have been killed in protests that have swept the nation and deepened a political crisis facing the Islamist leader. Hundreds of demonstrators in Port Said, Suez and Ismailia turned out against the decision within moments of Mursi's announcement...

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