Clashes in Cairo after Mursi seizes new powers

CAIRO (Reuters) - Angry youths hurled rocks at security forces and burned a police truck as thousands gathered in central Cairo to protest at Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi's decision to grab sweeping new powers. Police fired tear gas near Tahrir Square, heart of the 2011 uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak at the height of the Arab Spring. Thousands demanded that Mursi should quit...

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Tensions flare as protesters urge Thai PM to quit

BANGKOK: Thai police on Saturday fired tear gas and detained dozens of demonstrators as clashes erupted at the first major street protests against Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra's government.About 17,000 police were deployed for the rally in Bangkok's historic district, which was organised by the royalist group Pitak Siam."In the name of Pitak Siam and its allies I promise that we...

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3 die due to gas leakage at sugar mill

BIJNOR: Three persons were killed and two others fell ill due to methane gas leakage at Seohara Sugar Mill in the district, police said today. Turbine operator Jagdish Singh, Lokesh and security guard Pradeep fell unconscious and later died when they tried to stop the leakage from a turbine of the distillery plant of Upper Ganges Sugar Mill yesterday, they said. Two guards Kashinath and Vijay also...

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AP PHOTOS: Simple surgery heals blind Indonesians

PADANG SIDEMPUAN, Indonesia (AP) — They came from the remotest parts of Indonesia, taking crowded overnight ferries and riding for hours in cars or buses — all in the hope that a simple, and free, surgical procedure would restore their eyesight.Many patients were elderly and needed help to reach two hospitals in Sumatra where mass eye camps were held earlier this month by Nepalese surgeon Dr. Sanduk...

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Gas Explosion Levels Buildings Like 'Missile Strike'

A natural gas explosion in one of New England's biggest cities on Friday leveled a strip club with a boom heard for miles and heavily damaged a dozen other buildings but didn't kill anyone, authorities said.Firefighters, police officers and gas company workers in the area because of an earlier gas leak and odor report were among the 18 people injured in the blast, authorities said."This...

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Gaza ceasefire holds but mistrust runs deep

GAZA/JERUSALEM (Reuters) - A ceasefire between Israel and Hamas held firm on Thursday with scenes of joy among the ruins in Gaza over what Palestinians hailed as a victory, and both sides saying their fingers were still on the trigger. In the sudden calm, Palestinians who had been under Israeli bombs for eight days poured into Gaza streets for a celebratory rally, walking past wrecked...

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S Korea vows "aggressive" defence against Lone Star claim

SEOUL: South Korea said it would "aggressively" defend itself on Friday after a US private equity firm initiated arbitration of a damages claim arising from the sale of its stake in a Korean bank.Texas-based Lone Star Funds said on Wednesday it had filed for arbitration with the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes in Washington, becoming the first firm to invoke...

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AP PHOTOS: Simple surgery heals blind Indonesians

PADANG SIDEMPUAN, Indonesia (AP) — They came from the remotest parts of Indonesia, taking crowded overnight ferries and riding for hours in cars or buses — all in the hope that a simple, and free, surgical procedure would restore their eyesight.Many patients were elderly and needed help to reach two hospitals in Sumatra where mass eye camps were held earlier this month by Nepalese surgeon Dr. Sanduk...

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Stores Work to Keep Black Friday Safe

With earlier-than-ever deals and 147 million people expected to hit the stores this holiday weekend, retailers such as Best Buy are taking extra steps to avoid the Black Friday shopper chaos -- and inevitable news stories -- of the past.Best Buy officials said they've been prepping for the madness for days.The retailer has created color-coded maps, moved merchandise around to...

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Hamas-Israel ceasefire takes hold but mistrust runs deep

GAZA/JERUSALEM (Reuters) - A ceasefire between Israel and Gaza's Hamas rulers took hold on Thursday after eight days of conflict, although deep mistrust on both sides cast doubt on how long the Egyptian-sponsored deal can last. Even after the ceasefire came into force late on Wednesday, a dozen rockets from the Gaza Strip landed in Israel, all in open areas, a police spokesman said. In...

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97.6% of students pass PSLE

SINGAPORE: 97.6 percent of students who sat for this year's PSLE are eligible to progress to secondary school. A total of 48,333 Primary 6 students sat for the PSLE this year.47,163 of them passed the examination.63.1% qualify for the Express course, 23.1% for the Normal (Academic) and 11.4% for the Normal (Technical) course.There are 1,170 students (or 2.4%) who are assessed to be not...

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Rajya Sabha paralyzed on day one of winter session

NEW DELHI: Rajya Sabha could not function on the first day of the winter session of Parliament with issues like FDI and reservation to SCs/STs in promotions triggering uproar that led to its adjournment for the day. Trinamool Congress and AIADMK raised the issue of FDI in retail when the House met at noon after the first adjournment, while BSP members rushed to the well raising slogans and created...

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Study finds mammograms lead to unneeded treatment

Mammograms have done surprisingly little to catch deadly breast cancers before they spread, a big U.S. study finds. At the same time, more than a million women have been treated for cancers that never would have threatened their lives, researchers estimate.Up to one-third of breast cancers, or 50,000 to 70,000 cases a year, don't need treatment, the study suggests.It's the most detailed look yet at...

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Egypt's Morsi Wins U.S., Israeli Gratitude

Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi is being credited with brokering the cease-fire today between Israel and Hamas, but the international gratitude and praise he is gettting could come with a political price at home.Both Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and President Obama heaped praise on the Egyptian president. Obama called his Egyptian counterpart today to thank him for...

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Gaza shakes, Israelis killed as Clinton seeks truce

GAZA/JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli air strikes shook the Gaza Strip and Palestinian rockets struck across the border as U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton held talks in Jerusalem in the early hours of Wednesday, seeking a truce that can hold back Israel's ground troops. Egypt's new Islamist government is mediating talks and had floated hopes for a ceasefire by late Tuesday between...

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South Korean bus drivers set for nationwide strike

SEOUL: Millions of South Koreans face commuter chaos on Thursday with bus drivers set to launch a national strike to protest against a bill recognising taxis as public transport.Some 80,000 bus drivers across the country will launch the action from midnight on Wednesday, a bus union spokesman told AFP.The strike call was confirmed after a parliamentary committee approved the proposed bill,...

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Govt defends Kasab hanging; says wrong to question timing

PANJIM: Government on Wednesday denied that defended that 26/11 terrorist Ajmal Kasab's hanging was timed before the winter session of Parliament. Responding to questions information and broadcasting (I&B) minister Manish Tewari said that the message being sent to people is that perpetrators of the terrorist attack in Mumbai have been brought to justice. When asked about the timing of Kasab's...

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OB/GYNs back over-the-counter birth control pills

WASHINGTON (AP) — No prescription or doctor's exam needed: The nation's largest group of obstetricians and gynecologists says birth control pills should be sold over the counter, like condoms.Tuesday's surprise opinion from these gatekeepers of contraception could boost longtime efforts by women's advocates to make the pill more accessible.But no one expects the pill to be sold without a prescription...

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Ceasefire or 'De-Escalation'? Words Chosen Carefully

Nov 20, 2012 7:27pm AP Photo/Hatem MoussaAs news reports emerged Tuesday of a cease-fire or truce to end the crisis in Gaza, American officials made it a point not to use either of those terms.Instead, U.S. officials were  talking about “de-escalating” the violence in Gaza as a step toward a long-term resolution.Briefing White House reporters in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, ...

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Gaza truce pressure builds, Cairo in focus

GAZA/JERUSALEM (Reuters) - International pressure for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip puts Egypt's new Islamist president in the spotlight on Tuesday after a sixth day of Palestinian rocket fire and Israeli air strikes that have killed more than 100 people. Israel's leaders weighed the benefits and risks of sending tanks and infantry into the densely populated coastal enclave two months...

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Foreign investment in China drops in October

BEIJING: Foreign direct investment in China fell again in October, the government said on Tuesday, as investors remained cautious amid global economic woes and China's own slowdown.Foreign companies invested $8.3 billion in factories and other projects in China last month, down 0.24 percent from a year ago, Shen Danyang, Ministry of Commerce spokesman, said at a regular news conference.The...

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Jaganmohan's sister Sharmila takes over party's rein, Cong worried

HYDERABAD: Congress' belief that a prolonged jail for YSR Congress party president YS Jaganmohan Reddy may drain the enthusiasm of his supporters appears to have come to a nought, with his sister Sharmila also drawing huge crowds. Reddy, Kadapa MP and son of late Congress iron man YS Rajasekhara Reddy, is in jail for the last 175 days, after he was arrested by CBI on May 27, for alleged disproportionate...

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New push for most in US to get at least 1 HIV test

WASHINGTON (AP) — There's a new push to make testing for the AIDS virus as common as cholesterol checks.Americans ages 15 to 64 should get an HIV test at least once — not just people considered at high risk for the virus, an independent panel that sets screening guidelines proposed Monday.The draft guidelines from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force are the latest recommendations that aim to make...

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Israel Combats Cyber Attacks During Gaza Offensive

The Israeli government said today that since the beginning of its military operation in Gaza, cyber attackers have launched more than 44 million attempts to disrupt the operation of various Israeli government websites, but were only successful in knocking out one site for a short period."One hacking attempt was successful and took down a site for a few minutes," Carmela Avner, the...

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