Syria a top focus for Biden 3-country trip
WASHINGTON (AP) — The ongoing civil war in Syria will be a primary focus when Vice President Joe Biden embarks on a three-country swing through Europe.
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Users increasingly use Internet to buy drugs: EU report
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Virtually any kind of illegal drug can be bought on the Internet and delivered by post to users who no longer need to make direct contact with dealers, an EU study published on Thursday said. It gave no statistics on online drug sales, which are normally conducted on so-called "darknets", or anonymous computer networks. The report, compiled by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) and Europol, the pan-European police agency, said increased globalization and communication technology made it harder to track drug routes. ...
US challenges deal to merge Budweiser and Corona
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department on Thursday filed a lawsuit to stop Anheuser-Busch InBev's proposed $20.1 billion purchase of Mexican brewer Grupo Modelo, which would unite the ownership of popular beers like Budweiser and Corona.
Joint Chiefs: Looming cuts would 'hollow' military
WASHINGTON (AP) — The military's top leaders are warning Congress that automatic spending cuts looming in March would force the Pentagon to slash operating budgets, weakening the armed forces and possibly forcing furloughs of 800,000 civilian employees.
Syria says Israel responsible for air raid results
BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syria said on Thursday Israel and its allies bore responsibility for the results of the Israeli air raid near Damascus and said it had the right to defend its sovereignty. "Syria holds Israel and those who are protecting it at the Security Council responsible for the results of the attack and confirms its right to defend its land and sovereignty," state television quoted a letter from the Foreign Ministry to the United Nations as say saying. (Reporting by Mariam Karouny; Editing by Alison Williams)
Russian city getting back Stalin's name for war commemorations
VOLGOGRAD, Russia (Reuters) - The Russian city of Volgograd will bear Soviet dictator Josef Stalin's name again on Saturday when it marks the 70th anniversary of the epic battle that turned the tide in World War Two. Local lawmakers adopted a decision to use the name Hero City Stalingrad at events commemorating the 1942-1943 battle on Saturday and on four other days every year including May 9, when Russia marks the Allied victory over Nazi Germany. ...
U.S. challenges AB-InBev's purchase of Grupo Modelo
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department has filed a lawsuit seeking to stop Anheuser-Busch InBev SA from buying the half of Mexican brewer Grupo Modelo that it does not already own, saying the $20.1 billion deal would lessen competition in the U.S. beer market. Trading in Constellation Brands , which would have become sole owner of the company that distributes Modelo's Corona beer in the United States if the transaction had been approved, was halted after it dropped 23.8 percent. AB InBev shares dropped as much as 8. ...
Rights group says Russia's 2012 crackdown worst since Soviet era
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian authoritarianism rose to levels unprecedented in recent history in 2012, Human Rights Watch said on Thursday, assessing what it called the harshest crackdown on political freedoms in the country since the Soviet era. Russia introduced restrictive laws, harassed activists and interfered with non-governmental organizations during the year, which saw Vladimir Putin return to the Kremlin and former President Dmitry Medvedev appointed prime minister, the New York-based rights group said. "Since Putin's return ... ...
Lawmakers seek mortgage settlement documents from regulators
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Lawmakers on Thursday asked bank regulators to turn over documents related to the $8.5 billion settlement that ended a government-mandated review of crisis-era foreclosures, saying transparency was needed to boost confidence in the settlement. Senator Elizabeth Warren and Representative Elijah Cummings, both Democrats, said the Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) must address concerns that financial institutions have not been held accountable for misdeeds during the 2007-2009 U.S. financial crisis. ...
Kurdish militants dismiss Turkey withdrawal reports
ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Kurdish militants said on Thursday media reports that its fighters had agreed to withdraw from Turkey as part of a peace pact to end their 28-year-old insurgency were lies and part of a psychological war. The Sabah newspaper on Thursday said Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) guerrillas had agreed to withdraw to northern Iraq, where the group is based, by March 21 as part of peace talks with the PKK's jailed leader Abdullah Ocalan which started late last year. ...
Republicans pressure White House on labor appointments
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Several Republican lawmakers on Thursday introduced legislation to stop a labor board and consumer watchdog from enforcing regulations, after an appeals court questioned the legitimacy of recent White House appointments at both agencies. The bill prohibits the National Labor Relations Board and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau from enforcing or implementing decisions and regulations without a constitutionally confirmed board or director. A federal appeals court in Washington last week found that President Barack Obama violated the U.S. ...
White House shutters jobs council, citing progress on issues
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House said on Thursday it is disbanding President Barack Obama's jobs council, a group of high-profile chief executives who gave advice on how to boost hiring at a time of high unemployment. The White House said it has made progress on the council's recommendations and will begin a new, expanded effort to work with the business community to advance policy priorities promoted by the panel. "The expanded effort to build on progress made by the jobs council fits into a broad and aggressive engagement strategy that has already begun," a White House official said. ...
Hagel, McCain tangle over Iraq war and troop surge
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican Sen. John McCain is tangling with Chuck Hagel over his past statements about the Iraq war. The Arizona Republican says that his dissatisfaction Hagel's answers could affect whether he votes for or against the former Republican senator who is President Barack Obama's choice for secretary of defense.
Remove secret censoring system from Guantanamo court, judge orders
GUANTANAMO BAY U.S. NAVAL BASE, Cuba (Reuters) - A U.S. military judge on Thursday ordered the government to immediately dismantle the monitoring system that let outside censors halt the public broadcast of hearings for the Guantanamo prisoners accused of plotting the September 11 attacks. "It is the judge that controls the courtroom," said the judge, Army Colonel James Pohl. "This is the last time ... any other third party will be permitted to unilaterally decide that the broadcast should be suspended. ...
Analysis: Medicare premium support idea rising from ashes?
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Just months after President Barack Obama's re-election ended Republican hopes of controlling U.S. healthcare policy, one of the most controversial Republican proposals for Medicare is showing signs of rising from the political ashes. Premium support, a policy idea that would greatly expand the role of private insurers in providing Medicare coverage for hospital and doctor services, was considered dead soon after Republican Mitt Romney's November loss to Obama, when polls showed registered voters rejecting it by 2-to-1 margins. ...
Searchers recover U.S. F-16 pilot's body in Adriatic-statement
ROME (Reuters) - Search teams on Thursday recovered the body of a U.S. F-16 fighter jet pilot whose plane crashed in the Adriatic Sea three days ago, a statement from his family said. "It is with great sadness that we announce that the body of Captain Lucas Gruenther was found in the Adriatic Sea this afternoon," said the statement, which was released by the U.S. Air Force. Gruenther's jet went missing after it took off from Aviano Air Base on a training exercise on Monday evening. (Reporting by Steve Scherer)
Greek workers to strike against austerity on Feb. 20
ATHENS (Reuters) - Greek private sector workers will walk off the job for 24 hours on Feb, 20 to protest austerity measures prescribed by the country's international lenders, their union GSEE said on Thursday. Public sector union ADEDY is expected to join the strike, its general secretary Ilias Iliopoulos told Reuters. Greek labor unions, who combined represent about 2.5 million workers, have staged repeated strikes since the debt crisis broke out in late 2009. (Reporting by Renee Maltezou)
Hagel says legal immunity key in Afghanisan
WASHINGTON (AP) — Chuck Hagel, President Barack Obama's nominee to be the next secretary of defense, says it will be important to protect from potential Afghan prosecution any American troops who remain there after the allied combat mission ends in 2014.
Lynch launches bid for Kerry's US Senate seat
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (AP) — Democratic U.S. Rep. Stephen Lynch has officially launched his bid for John Kerry's U.S. Senate seat in Massachusetts.
Mali shows Europe must work to plug defense gaps: NATO
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - France's need for U.S. help during the Mali operation shows Europe must do more to fill worrying gaps in its defenses, NATO's chief said on Thursday. Anders Fogh Rasmussen also sounded the alarm about growing disparities between what the United States and Europe spend on defense and warned that NATO's military power and global influence could be put at risk if allies continue to slash their defense budgets while emerging powers boost theirs. ...
