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Officials: Bomb blasts kill 5 people in Baghdad

Iraqi officials say simultaneous bomb blasts at a Baghdad market have killed at least five people. A police officer says two bombs, hidden in clothing stalls in the capital’s al-Arabi wholesale market, went off simultaneously on Thursday morning. The officer says the explosions also wounded 15 people. A medical official confirmed the causality figures. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to talk to media. Public places such as cafes, restaurants, mosques and markets are favorite targets for militants in Iraq seeking to undermine the Shiite led-government efforts to maintain security nationwide. Thursdays’ bombings took place as Iraqi security forces and allied Sunni tribal militias are battling al-Qaida-linked militants who have seized significant areas in the country’s west since late December. © 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more […]

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Iraqi pipeline attacks raise fears of threat to oil

Fifteen soldiers were killed this week guarding an oil pipeline in northern Iraq, the first assault to involve so many casualties amid concerns an al-Qaida insurgency in western Iraq is spreading to vital oil-producing regions. Iraqi security authorities said Tuesday’s attack on the camp in Nineveh province took place the same day that Iraqi security forces captured three al-Qaida suspects as they tried to blow up a pipeline near the northern Kirkuk oilfields, which hold about a third of Iraq’s oil reserves of 431 billion barrels. Twin pipelines that carry Kirkuk’s oil production to Turkey’s Ceyhan terminal on the Mediterranean for export are a frequent target for saboteurs. Hussein al-Shahristani , Iraqi’s deputy prime minister for energy, told reporters in Baghdad Jan. 28 Iraq’s oil industry, the country’s economic lifeline, is increasingly coming under attack because of the civil war in neighboring Syria in […]

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Reports of South Sudan Fighting, Despite Pact, Prompt Worry and Warnings

Less than a month after the cease-fire was signed, a rebel leader’s hometown was attacked. Goran Tomasevic/Reuters NAIROBI, Kenya — The ranks of displaced people have swelled to nearly 900,000, close to a tenth of the entire population. Humanitarian groups warn that millions could go hungry if fields remain unplowed before the coming rainy season. Aid workers themselves are on the run, hiding ever deeper in the bush to escape attack. Fighting has continued in South Sudan, both rebels and government officials say, in spite of the cease-fire agreement last month that was meant to bring peace to the young nation while a broader political solution was found. Negotiators from the two sides will meet again in Ethiopia this week. But in a sign of the continuing hostilities, the hometown of Riek Machar, a former vice president […]

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Libyan army helicopter missing, possibly shot down

A Libyan military spokesman says an army helicopter with eight people on board has gone missing in the country’s east and may have been shot down. Colonel Ali al-Sheikhy says the aircraft went missing late Wednesday while en route to the city of Benghazi. He says there was no word on the fate of its two-member crew and six passengers. A regional security operations center in the coastal city of Ajdapia said the aircraft went down near the oil town of Ras Lanov. A military official said the helicopter had come under fire, which forced it to change course before it went missing. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to media. © 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about our Privacy Policy and Terms […]

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Putin backs Egypt army chief's run for president

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday wished Egypt’s military chief victory in the nation’s presidential vote as Moscow sought to expand its military and other ties with a key U.S. ally in the Middle East. Putin said at the start of his meeting with Field Marshal Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi that he’s aware of his intention to seek the presidency. "I know that you have made a decision to run for president," Putin said, according to Russian news reports. "That’s a very responsible decision: to undertake such a mission for the fate of the Egyptian people. On my own part, and on behalf of the Russian people I wish you success." El-Sissi, who rose to prominence after the ouster of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi last July, is popular among a large segment of Egyptians and is widely expected to announce a candidacy for presidential elections that […]

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Putin backs Egypt army chief’s run for president

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday wished Egypt’s military chief victory in the nation’s presidential vote as Moscow sought to expand its military and other ties with a key U.S. ally in the Middle East. Putin said at the start of his meeting with Field Marshal Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi that he’s aware of his intention to seek the presidency. "I know that you have made a decision to run for president," Putin said, according to Russian news reports. "That’s a very responsible decision: to undertake such a mission for the fate of the Egyptian people. On my own part, and on behalf of the Russian people I wish you success." El-Sissi, who rose to prominence after the ouster of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi last July, is popular among a large segment of Egyptians and is widely expected to announce a candidacy for presidential elections that […]

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3 killed as Venezuelan protests turn violent

As people fled in panic, one demonstrator fell to the ground with a bullet wound in his head. Onlookers screamed “assassins” as they rushed the 24-year-old marketing student to a police vehicle. He was later identified by family members as Bassil Da Costa. Also killed was the leader of a pro-government 23rd of January collective, as militant supporters of Venezuela’s socialist administration call themselves. National Assembly President Diosdado Cabello said the “revolutionary” known by his nickname Juancho was “vilely assassinated by the fascists” but he didn’t provide details. The troubles moved eastward to the wealthier neighborhood of Chacao after nightfall, leaving another unidentified demonstrator dead from a bullet wound, district Mayor Ramon Muchacho said via Twitter. Calm returned as midnight approached, leaving smoldering trash cans strewn along several blocks where demonstrators threw rocks at government buildings. The unrest comes on the heels of a wave of increasingly violent, student-led […]

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Venezuelan anti-government protests turn violent

Venezuelan security forces fired rubber bullets into the air Wednesday to break up a crowd of activists following the largest protests against President Nicolas Maduro’s government since he was re-elected almost a year ago. Five people were killed during standoffs including a police officer, two student demonstrators and a member of militant community groups known as "colectivos," according to local media. Twenty-five people have been injured during the protests. The fatalities came at the end of rival demonstrations to support and denounce Maduro’s government. Under the banner "The Exit," meaning Maduro’s departure, hard line opposition groups have been holding protests around the country for the past two weeks, to complain about rampant crime, corruption and economic hardships. "All of these problems — shortages, inflation, insecurity, the lack of opportunities — have a single culprit: the government," Leopoldo Lopez, a Harvard University-trained former mayor, told a crowd of about 10,000 […]

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Ford says January China auto sales up 53 percent year-on-year

Ford Motor Co ( F.N ) and its Chinese joint ventures sold 94,466 vehicles in China in January, an increase of 53 pct from a year earlier, the U.S. automaker said on Wednesday. That compares with a 35 percent increase in December and a 47 percent jump in November. In 2013, Ford sold a total of 935,813 vehicles in China, up 49 percent from the previous year. Ford operates joint ventures in China with Chongqing Changan Automobile Co Ltd ( 000625.SZ ) and Jiangling Motors Corp ( 000550.SZ ). (Reporting By Shanghai newsroom and Norihiko Shirouzu; Editing by Kazunori Takada)

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China's auto sales growth tumbles in January

China’s auto sales growth tumbled to 7 percent in January amid an economic slowdown and curbs imposed to fight smog and traffic. Drivers in the world’s biggest auto market bought 1.85 million passenger vehicles, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said Thursday. It was the first time monthly sales surpassed 1.8 million. Auto sales growth is forecast to decelerate sharply from last year’s 15.7 percent expansion to about 8 to 10 percent. Sales grew 17 percent in December. Chinese leaders see auto manufacturing as a driver of economic development. But rapid growth has left Beijing, Shanghai and other major cities choking on smog. Some cities have responded by limiting the number of new vehicle registrations. China’s auto market is the world’s most crowded, with major global automakers and dozens of small Chinese brands jostling for sales. Intense competition is squeezing indigenous Chinese automakers that have less […]

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