Category: BUSINESS + ECONOMY

Pakistan school bus explosion and blaze kill 17 children: media

Pakistan school bus explosion and blaze kill 17 children: media

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Seventeen Pakistani children burnt to death on Saturday when a gas cylinder on the bus taking them to school exploded, media said. Ten children were injured in the blaze on the outskirts of Gujrat, 100 miles southeast of Islamabad, DawnNews said. Many vehicles in energy-starved Pakistan are powered by relatively cheap compressed [...]

Column: What war on the press?

Column: What war on the press?

By Jack Shafer (Reuters) – President Barack Obama has declared war on the press, say writers at Slate, the Daily Beast, Reason, the Washington Post (Jennifer Rubin, Dana Milbank and Leonard Downie Jr.), Commentary, National Journal (Ron Fournier), the New York Times editorial page, CBS News, Fox News (Roger Ailes) and even Techdirt. Scores of [...]

UK fighters escort Pakistan plane to airport, two arrests

UK fighters escort Pakistan plane to airport, two arrests

By Rhys Jones and Peter Griffiths LONDON (Reuters) – British fighter jets escorted a Pakistan International Airlines passenger plane to Stansted Airport near London on Friday, where police went on board and arrested two men on suspicion of endangering an aircraft. Passengers were leaving the plane and no one was hurt in the incident, a [...]

Taliban attack international compound in Afghan capital

Taliban attack international compound in Afghan capital

By Amie Ferris-Rotman and Mirwais Harooni KABUL (Reuters) – Taliban militants launched a large-scale attack involving the United Nations in the center of the Afghan capital Kabul on Friday, sparking a five-hour battle with security forces. A plume of smoke hung over Kabul after the attack was launched, with the sound of .50 caliber heavy [...]

Durable goods orders point to factory resilience

Durable goods orders point to factory resilience

By Jason Lange WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Orders for long-lasting U.S. manufactured goods rose more than expected in April, a hopeful sign that a sharp slowdown in factory output could soon run its course. New orders for durable goods, which range from toasters to aircraft, increased 3.3 percent last month, the Commerce Department said on Friday. [...]

Kerry says Israelis, Palestinians must make tough decisions

Kerry says Israelis, Palestinians must make tough decisions

By Arshad Mohammed TEL AVIV (Reuters) – Israeli and Palestinian leaders must decide soon on whether to revive long-dormant peace negotiations to end their decades-old conflict, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Friday. Ending two days of meetings in the region, Kerry said he had had "very productive" talks. But there were no [...]

Africa backs Kenya call for Hague court to drop Kenyatta case

Africa backs Kenya call for Hague court to drop Kenyatta case

By Aaron Maasho ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) – African nations have backed a request by Kenya for charges of crimes against humanity by its president to be referred back to the east African country, African Union documents show. President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy, William Ruto, are both facing trial in the International Criminal Court (ICC), [...]

Group linked to Algeria gas plant attack claims Niger raids

ABIDJAN (Reuters) – An al Qaeda-linked group that carried out the raid on the In Amenas gas plant in Algeria in January has claimed to have participated in Thursday’s attacks in Niger. A statement posted on the internet on Friday was signed by Khalid Abu al-Abbas, better known as Mokhtar Belmokhtar, a leading figure in [...]

Syria opposition unity talks face specter of collapse

Syria opposition unity talks face specter of collapse

By Khaled Yacoub Oweis ISTANBUL – Syrian opposition talks aimed at presenting a coherent front at an international peace conference to end the civil war faced the prospect of collapse after President Bashar al-Assad’s foes failed to cut an internal deal, opposition sources said on Friday. The failure of the Syrian National Coalition to alter [...]

Truck crash caused Washington state bridge collapse: officials

Truck crash caused Washington state bridge collapse: officials

By Elaine Porterfield MOUNT VERNON, Washington (Reuters) – A bridge that collapsed in Washington state and sent two cars plunging into the Skagit River, raising concerns about the safety of the nation’s aging infrastructure, was knocked down by a truck that crashed into at least one girder, officials said on Friday. The truck, after the [...]