| FBI 'reviewing' cop shooting of Mo. teen Posted:  FBI begins investigation into shooting death of unarmed teenager by police officer.
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| VIDEO: Kurdish reporter tries to interview ISIL jihadists, is rebuffed Posted: |
| Bombed three times, 85-year-old Palestinian is refugee again Posted: 11 Aug 2014 07:46 AM PDT  Palestinian Ibrahim Mohammad al-Toum, 85, sleeps on the floor on a thin mattress in a Gaza schoolroom, displaced for the third time in six years. A farmer of oranges and lemons, his house in northern Gaza City has been bombed in each of the three Israeli-Palestinian conflicts since 2008. At any rate, he will not blame the Palestinian authorities in the Gaza Strip, a coastal enclave of 1.8 million people dominated since 2007 by the Islamist Hamas faction. Israel says Hamas is responsible because it uses residential areas as arms depots and launchpads for rockets, drawing Israeli strikes.
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| New 'Game of Thrones' actor, 86, dies days after start Posted: 11 Aug 2014 09:42 AM PDT  BELFAST, Northern Ireland (AP) — Authorities say Belfast actor J.J. Murphy has died days after starting his new role on the HBO series "Game of Thrones."
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| VIDEO: Grieving grandpa brought to tears by new puppy Posted: |
| Yazidi refugees stranded atop Mt. Sinjar seen swarming aid helicopters Posted: 11 Aug 2014 08:25 AM PDT  Yazidi refugees stranded by ISIL for days atop Iraq's Mount Sinjar are swarming helicopters arriving with food and water, photos and video from the region shows.
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| FBI takes over police shooting of Mo. teen Posted: 11 Aug 2014 08:20 AM PDT  After suburban St. Louis cop fatally shot unarmed 18-year-old, chaos marred community's vigil.
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| Time-lapse film gives rare look inside N. Korean capital Pyongyang Posted: 11 Aug 2014 06:29 AM PDT  To most people not named Dennis Rodman, North Korea remains a mystery. But a new time-lapse video produced by a pair of filmmakers for a North Korean tour company gives a rare glimpse inside the enigmatic country.
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| Israeli troops shoot dead 'wanted' Palestinian in West Bank raid Posted: 11 Aug 2014 07:57 AM PDT  Israeli troops killed a Palestinian in the occupied West Bank on Monday during a raid on his house near the city of Nablus, local medical officials said. An Israeli military spokeswoman said she was aware of troop activity in the area but initially had no further details. Local witnesses said Zakaria al-Aqra, 23, was wanted by Israel and had been shot dead. Part of Aqra's house was destroyed by an army bulldozer, they said.
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| Look! Up in the sky! It's 'Supermoon'! Posted: 10 Aug 2014 09:35 AM PDT  The biggest, brightest and most hashtagged full moon of 2014 dazzled sky watchers around the world on Sunday night.
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| Looting, vandalism breaks out after vigil for Missouri man Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:06 AM PDT  FERGUSON, Mo. (AP) — The FBI said it opened an investigation Monday into the fatal shooting of an unarmed black teenager by police in suburban St. Louis, a day after tension surrounding the case erupted in unrest following a candlelight vigil for the teen.
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| US: Bypassing Iraq's al-Maliki a good move Posted: 11 Aug 2014 06:50 AM PDT  Senior American diplomat with responsibility for Iraq welcomes move toward "inclusive" government.
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| Prostitution ban in Norway successful against human trafficking Posted: 11 Aug 2014 06:49 AM PDT  Norway's ban on buying sex has reduced human trafficking and has not increased violence against women, as some had feared, a study commissioned by the government said. Following the example of its neighbor Sweden, Norway criminalized buying sex in 2009, but critics said the law would push prostitution underground, making women more vulnerable and increasing the likelihood of violence against them. "The enforcement of the law, in combination with the laws against trafficking and pimping, makes Norway a less attractive country for prostitution-based trafficking than what would have been the case if the law had not been adopted," it said. In Oslo, Norway's largest city, convicted sex buyers face a 25,000 crown ($4,000) fine.
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| Clooney's fiancee to serve on Gaza rights probe Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:26 AM PDT  GENEVA (AP) — The U.N.'s three-member commission on possible violations of the rules of war in Gaza will include the increasingly high-profile British-Lebanese lawyer Amal Alamuddin, who is engaged to George Clooney, and a Canadian legal expert whose appointment is already drawing fire.
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| Watson trusting Tiger on Ryder Cup health report Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:25 AM PDT  Tom Watson will decide on making injured Tiger Woods a captain's pick for the US Ryder Cup team largely on trusting the 14-time major winner to evaluate himself. "I think it really directly comes from Tiger, how he assesses himself," Watson said.
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| Endangered Florida butterflies to get federal protection Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:24 AM PDT  By Barbara Liston ORLANDO (Reuters) - Two species of butterflies that live in South Florida will be listed as endangered under federal law, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced Monday. The official listing of the Bartram's scrub-hairstreak and Florida leafwing butterflies under the Endangered Species Act, expected on Tuesday, will make it illegal to capture or harm the butterflies, and their larvae. Both species were common around Miami and the Florida Keys until development wiped out much of their natural habitat, according to agency spokesman Ken Warren. The agency also designated a total of 11,539 acres in seven separate parcels in Miami-Dade and Monroe Counties as critical habitat for the butterflies.
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| Jeff Goldblum and band to perform at Cafe Carlyle Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:23 AM PDT  NEW YORK (AP) — Jeff Goldblum is coming back to New York but not to act — he'll be singing.
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| NATO chief says will have to decide on Afghan pullout soon Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:21 AM PDT  By Adrian Croft BRUSSELS (Reuters) - NATO will soon be forced to take a decision on a total pullout from Afghanistan unless a deadlock over the country's election ends and a new president signs an agreement allowing foreign forces to stay, the head of the alliance said on Monday. Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen told Reuters the Sept. 4-5 NATO summit in Wales would be very close to a deadline for taking that decision. "Soon we will have to take tough decisions because if there isn't a legal basis for our continued presence in Afghanistan, we will have to withdraw everything by the end of this year and to do that we will have to start planning ... very soon," he said, without giving a firm date. NATO will end its combat mission in Afghanistan by the end of this year but plans to leave behind a smaller force to train and advise Afghan security forces in their fight against Taliban insurgents.
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| Postal Service loses $2 billion in second quarter Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:19 AM PDT  By Elvina Nawaguna WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Postal Service continued to bleed money during its second quarter, despite an increase in package revenues and an emergency price hike that took effect in January. USPS has focused on its shipping and package business and expanded to Sunday package delivery as more people shop online and need a service to deliver their purchases. USPS blames much of its financial troubles on a 2006 mandate to stow away billions of dollars for its future retirees' healthcare. The Postal Service already defaulted on three of its payments into the fund and does not expect to make the next $5.7 billion installment due September 30.
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| Origins of Hierarchy: How Egyptian Pharaohs Rose to Power Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:18 AM PDT  The rulers of ancient Egypt lived in glorious opulence, decorating themselves with gold and perfumes and taking their treasures with them to the grave. "There was basically nowhere else to go," said study author Simon Powers, a postdoctoral researcher in ecology and evolution at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland. "That cost of leaving could basically lock individuals into despotism." [Photo Gallery: Images of Egypt's First Pharaoh] Ancient Egypt is just one example of a society that transitioned from equality to hierarchy.
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| Haiti police search for 329 escaped prisoners Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:16 AM PDT  PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — The attack on a Haitian prison on the capital's outskirts to free the son of a prominent businessman being held on kidnapping charges led to the escape of 329 inmates, officials said Monday.
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| UK warns of humanitarian crisis in Iraq Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:13 AM PDT  LONDON (AP) — Prime Minister David Cameron's office pledged Monday to send a small contingent of Royal Air Force Tornados to Northern Iraq to offer surveillance capability over the siege of a minority group by Islamic militants — a situation described by London as a massive humanitarian disaster.
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| US sending arms to Kurds in Iraq Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:13 AM PDT  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration has begun directly providing weapons to Kurdish forces who have started to make gains against Islamic militants in northern Iraq, senior U.S. officials said Monday, but the aid has so far been limited to automatic rifles and ammunition.
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| U.S. watchdog calls bitcoin 'Wild West' of finance Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:12 AM PDT  By Douwe Miedema WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Virtual currencies such as bitcoin are the "Wild West" of financial products because of risks including huge swings in exchange rates, the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said on Monday. "Virtual currencies are not backed by any government or central bank, and at this point consumers are stepping into the Wild West when they engage in the market," CFPB Director Richard Cordray said in a statement. Other risks include the fact that online or virtual currencies have been a target for hackers while some virtual currency companies have provided little help in cases where funds were lost or stolen, the CFPB said.
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| Ship set to rescue sailors stranded due to Julio Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:11 AM PDT  HONOLULU (AP) — A container ship crew is trying to position itself in a way that doesn't knock over a sailboat it is trying to rescue from waters roiled by Hurricane Julio off the Hawaii coast.
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| How one ex-Apple exec wants to fix Apple’s ‘impenetrable jungle’ of an App Store Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:10 AM PDT  It's not uncommon to hear criticism of Apple's App Store even from fans of the company, as many have said in the past that the store makes it much harder than it should be to find relevant high-quality apps from smaller publishers. Cult of Mac points us to a new post from Jean-Louis Gassée, who worked at Apple throughout the 1980s and who has some intriguing new ideas for improving the App Store, which he refers to as an "impenetrable jungle." "Instead of using algorithms to sort and promote the apps that you permit on your shelves, why not assign a small group of adepts to create and shepherd an App Store Guide, with sections such as Productivity, Photography, Education, and so
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| Stewart crash inquiry focuses on lighting, track Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:10 AM PDT  The collision was as common as any in racing. Kevin Ward Jr.'s car spun twice like a top, wheels hugging the wall, before it plopped backward on the dimly lit dirt track.
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| Easing of Ukraine tensions helps drive stocks up Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:06 AM PDT  NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks rose Monday as positive corporate news provided some balance after weeks of geopolitical upheaval in the Middle East and elsewhere.
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| Testimony: Ex-Va. governor touted pill at meeting Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:06 AM PDT  RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell ended a meeting in his office by touting the effectiveness of an anti-inflammatory pill marketed by the wealthy businessman who showered him and his wife with thousands of dollars in gifts and loans, a state official said Monday.
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| Russia says sending non-military aid convoy to east Ukraine Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:04 AM PDT  Russia said Monday it was sending a civilian aid convoy to eastern Ukraine in cooperation with the Red Cross, despite Western fears the mission might be used as cover for intervention. Kiev said an aid mission was planned but that Western nations would be involved and Russia was not acting alone. "The Russian side is sending a humanitarian convoy to Ukraine in cooperation with representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross," President Vladimir Putin told European Commission head Jose Manuel Barroso on the phone, the Kremlin said in a statement.
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| India's newest airline eyes October launch Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:02 AM PDT  India's newest airline announced Monday flights could begin in October, saying it was "bullish" about the future even as a rival carrier reported a big loss. The new airline, to be called Vistara -- a Sanskrit word meaning "limitless expanse" -- is 49-percent-owned by Singapore Airlines, while the Mumbai-based Tata conglomerate controls 51 percent. The airline will offer both business and economy class, new chief executive Phee Teik Yeoh told reporters in New Delhi, and hoped to start flying passengers "sometime in October", subject to approval by India's Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). India's air passenger market has expanded at breakneck speed but many companies are laden with debts and beset by cut-throat fare wars, high fuel costs and shoddy infrastructure.
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| With fresh investment, BuzzFeed eyes expanded coverage Posted: 11 Aug 2014 11:00 AM PDT  Washington (AFP) - The social news group BuzzFeed is looking to expand its coverage areas with a fresh infusion of $50 million in venture capital.
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| Wall St extends gains from Friday in broad rally Posted: 11 Aug 2014 10:58 AM PDT  By Akane Otani NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. shares rose modestly in Monday trading, continuing a recovery from a brief correction that ended Friday as investors focused on hopes for easing tensions between Ukraine and Russia. The rally extended gains from Friday, when the S&P 500 and Dow Jones industrial average posted their best day since March on news Russia would cease military exercises near the Ukraine border. The market seemed little affected by news Russia would send an aid convoy to eastern Ukraine, a move Western officials have said could serve as a pretext for an invasion. NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen warned that he still sees a "high probability" that Russia, using the guise of a humanitarian mission, could intervene militarily in Ukraine.
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| U.S. jobs rose since '08 crisis, but pay is 23 pct less: report Posted: 11 Aug 2014 10:55 AM PDT  (Reuters) - Jobs growth in the U.S. since the 2008 recession has been undermined by lower wages, with workers earning an average 23 percent less than earnings from jobs which were lost, a report by an organization representing U.S. cities said on Monday. The average annual salary in sectors where jobs were lost - particularly manufacturing and construction - during the 2008-9 financial crisis was $61,637, according to the report by the United States Conference of Mayors (USCM), which represents cities with populations of more than 30,000. The latest monthly employment data from the Labor Department showed that more than 200,000 jobs were created for the sixth straight month in July, but that wages were about flat in the private sector.
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| Al-Jazeera America logs first anniversary Posted: 11 Aug 2014 10:55 AM PDT  NEW YORK (AP) — Al-Jazeera America marks its first anniversary on the air next week, and if you haven't watched much, you're not alone.
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| Exclusive: GlaxoSmithKline faces fresh drug bribery claims in Syria Posted: 11 Aug 2014 10:53 AM PDT  By Ben Hirschler LONDON (Reuters) - GlaxoSmithKline faces new allegations that it bribed Syrian doctors and officials to boost sales of its medicines, following recent accusations of corruption in its non-prescription business in the country. GSK - one of the few big firms still supplying drugs in Syria - said on Monday it would investigate the new claims involving its own staff and local distributors. Reuters last month reported allegations of corruption in GSK's Syrian consumer business, which sells products including toothpaste and painkillers. The new corruption claims involve alleged bribes paid to boost sales of various medicines, including ones to treat cancer and to prevent blood clots.
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| Lana Del Rey latest to postpone Israel show Posted: 11 Aug 2014 10:52 AM PDT  Lana Del Rey has become the latest Western musician to call off a concert in Israel as security fears from the Gaza conflict take a toll on the entertainment industry. The US pop balladeer, whose latest album "Ultraviolence" debuted at number one on the US charts, had been scheduled to play her first concert in Israel at Tel Aviv's Nokia Arena on August 20. Her opening act, Iowa-born singer-songwriter Max Jury, tweeted over the weekend that "unfortunately" the show with Del Rey "has been postponed" but that it would be rescheduled. A representative for Del Rey did not immediately answer a request for comment.
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