Suicide car bomber kills three foreign troops in Afghan capital - Reuters

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Suicide car bomber kills three foreign troops in Afghan capital - Reuters

By Mirwais Harooni and Kay Johnson

KABUL Tue Sep 16, 2014 2:19am EDT

U.S. troops keep watch near a damaged vehicle at the site of suicide attack in Kabul September 16, 2014.

Credit: Reuters/Omar Sobhani

KABUL (Reuters) - A suicide car bomber killed at least three foreign troops in an attack on a convoy near the U.S. embassy in Kabul on Tuesday, the NATO-led coalition said, one of the worst attacks on international forces in the Afghan capital in months.

The attack near the heavily fortified embassy comes amid a months-long political stalemate and an emboldened insurgency, with a presidential election still unresolved as most foreign combat troops prepare to leave by the end of the year.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack on the main road leading to Kabul's international airport, not far from the sprawling U.S. embassy compound that is also home to other members of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) coalition.

ISAF said in a short statement three of its troops had been killed and that it was investigating the incident. The coalition recalled an earlier statement that said four troops had been killed. At least five were wounded.

There was no immediate word on any Afghan casualties.

Afghan Deputy Interior Minister Mohammad Ayub Salangi said on Twitter a suicide car bomber had targeted a convoy of vehicles carrying foreign troops.

In a text message sent to journalists, a Taliban spokesman said the suicide bomber, identified only as Bilal, had been lying in wait for foreign troops in a car packed with explosives.

The blast tore through cars and shattered shop windows on the road a few hundred meters from the main embassy gate.

A Reuters photographer said he saw coalition troops carrying four bodies wrapped in black plastic back into their base.

Another Reuters witness reported seeing the body of one foreigner in a uniform lying on the ground while other coalition troops cordoned off the area and rushed to help the wounded.

"HUGE BLAST"

Ambulances arrived within minutes of the blast during the morning rush hour at about 8 a.m. local time (0330 GMT/11.30 a.m. EDT).

"It was a huge blast," said wounded bystander Haji Awal Gul, his shirt splattered with blood as he stood on the roadside.

Tensions have been building in Afghanistan since the disputed run-off vote in a presidential election in June, with rival candidates still arguing over the outcome despite U.S. efforts to broker a compromise deal.

Taliban insurgents have been exploiting the uncertainty, launching bombings and attacks on government security forces and officials across Afghanistan.

In western Herat province, one U.S. soldier was killed when an unidentified member of the Afghan security forces turned on his trainers late on Monday, the latest incident in a string of "green-on-blue" attacks.

A Western official, who asked not to be identified, said the U.S. soldier was killed when the Afghan threw a hand grenade at his trainers.

ISAF did not confirm the exact details of the attack. An ISAF statement on Tuesday said the U.S. service member was killed when an individual wearing an Afghan army uniform "turned his weapon against ISAF members".

Also overnight, two suicide bombers set 26 fuel tankers ablaze in an attack on a customs post near a border crossing into Pakistan in Afghanistan's east, Afghanistan's TOLO media reported on Tuesday.

One of the attackers detonated explosives he was carrying while the other was killed in an ensuing gunbattle, the report on TOLOnews.com quoted Afghan officials as saying.

(Additional reporting by Jessica Donati; Editing by Paul Tait)

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West talks up extremist threat during Paris terrorism conference - The Globe and Mail

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West talks up extremist threat during Paris terrorism conference - The Globe and Mail

Offers of more Western warplanes and tough talk about a global war on terrorism emerged on Monday in Paris, but the U.S.-led coalition aimed at destroying the Islamic State includes no offers from Arab states to commit to the “boots on the ground,” considered critical by U.S. President Barack Obama.

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Representatives from more than two dozen countries, including 10 Arab states along with Canada, Russia, France and Britain, met at a conference in Paris and pledged support for Baghdad in battling the Sunni jihadis who have seized a swath of Syria and Iraq to create a caliphate under the Islamic State banner.

But splits emerged even as the coalition was being formed and the battle cries of the committed ranged from full-throated to vague.

Canada was among the most strident.

“I … condemn this terrorist group, which has perverted the peaceful message of Islam and murdered thousands of innocents in its name,” Foreign Minister John Baird said. “This rogue group systematically violates every value that Canada holds dear.”

Canada has deployed 70 special forces to Iraq, who along with 1,500 U.S. advisers form the spearhead of the effort to co-ordinate Iraqi and Kurdish ground troops with air strikes by U.S. warplanes against the black-clad extremists.

But the actual commitment forged in Paris was hedged and conditional. Foreign ministers agreed they were “committed to supporting the new Iraqi government in its fight against Daesh [the pejorative Arabic acronym for the group that calls itself Islamic State] by any means necessary including appropriate military assistance, in line with the needs expressed by the Iraqi authorities, in accordance with international law and without jeopardizing civilian security.”

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius denounced the militants, saying “the throat-slitters of Daesh – that’s what I call them – tell the whole world: ‘Either you’re with us or we kill you.’”

France and Australia have offered to join the U.S. bombing campaign, which blunted the Islamic State’s rapid advance to the gates of Baghdad. But Turkey, a key front-line state, has offered only humanitarian aid and refused to let coalition warplanes fly bombing missions from its big air force base at Incirlik. Most of the U.S. air strikes are being launched from the USS George H.W. Bush cruising in the Persian Gulf.

“The threat is global and the response must be global,” French President François Hollande said. France, which like Canada opted out of the 2003 Iraq war, has taken a leading role in military actions against Islamist militants in both North Africa and the Middle East. “There is no time to lose,” Mr. Hollande told the conference.

Air strikes have helped Kurdish peshmerga forces stabilize a front in northern Iraq. But without ground forces acceptable to the Sunni Muslim populations, the air war can’t “degrade and destroy” – to use Mr. Obama’s words – the Islamic State’s proto-caliphate.

Neither Syria nor Iran, the two states with forces actively engaged in ground combat against Islamic State fighters, were invited to the Paris conference, apparently because of objections from Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

Russia, an ally of both Damascus and Tehran, deplored their absence. Both were “natural allies” in the war against Islamist extremists, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said. Moscow has staunchly supported Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, whose regime is waging a brutal war against rebels, who are mostly Sunnis, with Islamic State the most militarily capable.

Mr. Obama said last week he was prepared to bomb Islamic State forces in Syria as well as Iraq, which would – ironically – amount to air strikes against the Assad regime’s most bitter foe.

Both Iran and Syria lampooned Mr. Obama’s new-found interest in waging war against the Islamic State.

“I saw no point in co-operating with a country whose hands are dirty and intentions murky,” Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in comments quoted by IRNA, the state-controlled news agency.

In Damascus, Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad said the U.S. effort was flawed. “You cannot fight terrorism when you collaborate with those who created these terror groups including in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and others,” he told the BBC.

Wading back into the bitter sectarian violence that has erupted in several Middle East countries has also brought Mr. Obama under fire domestically.

“This idea we will never have boots on the ground to defeat them in Syria is fantasy, said Senator Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican. He said the rise of the Islamic State is the consequence of Mr. Obama’s decision to pull all U.S. troops out of Iraq in 2011.

“All this has come home to roost over the last three years of incompetent decisions,” he said. “This is not about bringing a few people to justice who behead the innocent in a brutal fashion; it’s about protecting millions of people throughout the world from a radical Islamic army. They’re intending to come here, so I will not let this President suggest to the American people we can outsource our security,” he said, referring to Mr. Obama’s insistence that he would limit the U.S. military response to air strikes.

Vague plans to train Sunni ground forces deemed moderate and therefore acceptable to Washington have also emerged, with Saudi Arabia offering a base for training. But it may take months before any ground forces capable of taking advantage of U.S. air strikes in Syria can deploy.

“To defeat and ultimately destroy ISIL, something that is not only in our interest but in the interest of the countries in the region, [Arab states] are going to need to take the fight,” White House chief of staff Denis McDonough said, referring to the Islamic State militants by an earlier name.

“They’re going to help us beat them on the ground,” he added.

The President’s newly hatched strategy of air war alone – backed by an ironclad promise the he won’t send U.S. combat troops to Iraq or Syria – is politically popular but has been questioned by critics.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry claims there are Arab states that have offered to provide ground forces, but he declined to identify them.

“There are some who have offered to do so, but we are not looking for that, at this moment anyway,” he said.

Follow Paul Koring on Twitter: @PaulKoring

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At summit against Islamic State, leaders pledge to take 'all means necessary' (+ ... - Christian Science Monitor

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At summit against Islamic State, leaders pledge to take 'all means necessary' (+ ... - Christian Science Monitor

Paris — The pledge of 26 foreign ministers in Paris today to combat the self-declared Islamic State with “all means necessary” gives an important boost to the international efforts to dismantle the militant group that is imposing its will on large parts of Syria and Iraq.

“It shows a political will to tackle [the extremists] collectively,” says Yves Boyer, associate director of the French think tank Foundation for Strategic Research, which he says is crucial for legitimacy. “There is some feeling that the US should not be the full leader of what is going on, because of the failures of the US in this part of the world since 2001.”

The US says the coalition now includes 40 countries. But despite the expressions of unity, it remains unclear what nation is willing to shoulder which part of the burden, and what specific steps are under consideration.

The United States has been seeking such international backing since President Obama unveiled his plans to counter IS extremists, who have now beheaded three Westerners, including two American journalists and, most recently, a British aid worker.

Despite the political risks of following the US into the conflict, European governments have spoken urgently about the need to act against Islamic State militants, in no small part because many of the IS fighters are Europeans and, leaders say, represent a threat to European security. 

In Paris today, French President François Hollande struck an aggressive tone at the outset, arguing that there was "no time to lose." Earlier French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said: "The cost of inaction would be to say to these butchers 'go ahead, you have a free pass.' We won't accept that.”

British Prime Minister David Cameron, in reacting to the beheading of aid worker David Haines, said the UK would “hunt down those responsible and bring them to justice no matter how long it takes.”

France said it began reconnaissance flights over Iraq today but did not say what it would do in Syria, even though IS's stronghold is there. In fact, the meeting today left out the critical and more politically sensitive issue of how to tackle IS in Syria without giving a boost to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Russia has also warned against conducting airstrikes in Syria without the backing of Mr. Assad.

Syria was not invited to the summit today. Neither was Iran, due to dissent by many Arab states. "We wanted a consensus among countries over Iran's attendance, but in the end it was more important to have certain Arab states than Iran," a French diplomat told Reuters.

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AB InBev Explores Financing for an SABMiller Deal

WSJ.com: US Business

AB InBev Explores Financing for an SABMiller Deal

Updated Sept. 15, 2014 8:53 a.m. ET

LONDON—Anheuser-Busch InBev NV is talking to banks about financing a potential megadeal, perhaps reaching £75 billion ($122 billion), to buy global beer rival SABMiller PLC, according to a person familiar with the matter.

A tie-up between the world's two largest brewing companies has been rumored for years, but a revival in global merger...

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AB InBev Seeks Financing for SABMiller Deal

WSJ.com: US Business

AB InBev Seeks Financing for SABMiller Deal

Updated Sept. 15, 2014 8:53 a.m. ET

LONDON—Anheuser-Busch InBev NV is talking to banks about financing what could be a roughly £75 billion ($122 billion) deal to buy global beer rival SABMiller PLC, according to a person familiar with the matter.

A tie-up between the world's two largest brewing companies has been rumored for years, but a revival in global merger activity this year has sparked renewed speculation about a deal. AB InBev isn't in active discussions with...

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Daniele Watts, 'Django Unchained' actress allegedly mistaken for prostitute ... - New York Daily News

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Daniele Watts, 'Django Unchained' actress allegedly mistaken for prostitute ... - New York Daily News

Daniele Watts, the actress who claims she was wrongfully detained and handcuffed by Studio City police for making out with her boyfriend, argued police had no right to demand her identification when they stopped her on Sept. 11.

In audio from the incident obtained by TMZ, Watts is heard arguing with the arresting officer as he repeatedly asks to see her ID.

“Do you know how many times the cops have been called ... just because I’m black and he’s white,” she’s heard saying.

The officer accuses Watts of bring up the “race card,” saying he was called by neighbors in response to a lewd scene.

“I have every right to ask your ID,” the officer says, as Watts protests.

The “Weeds” actress took to her facebook page Thursday to share her experience — which she believes was the result of prejudice against her being black with a white boyfriend.  Watts posted photos that her beau, Brian Lucas, took as she stood handcuffed and crying.

Click here to listen to TMZ audio - Caution: explicit language

Witnesses from nearby buildings apparently told police they saw Watts and Lucas having sex in the passenger seat of their car, according to TMZ. 

“Today I was handcuffed and detained by 2 police officers from the Studio City Police Department after refusing to agree that I had done something wrong by showing affection, fully clothed, in a public place,” she wrote.

“From the questions that (the cop) asked, I could tell (he) thought we were a HO (prostitute) and a TRICK (client),” Lucas added on his own Facebook page.

Watts said she was talking to her father and standing by a tree when the police came. She’s heard telling her father to “hold on” as she talks to the officers in the audio release.

Watts is also heard telling the cops that she “has a publicist” and works as an actor in the studio nearby.

“I am going to say no,” she tells the cop who repeatedly asks for her ID. “And you can say that I’m resisting arrest.”

The officer responds saying Watts was “interfering” rather than resisting arrest and that he had probable cause to ask for identification because of the complaints from neighbors.

The law in California, and in New York, has no statute requiring individuals to present identification when detained on suspicion of criminal activity.

After protest from Watts, the officer requests a female officer be brought to the scene.

“We’re going to get your ID one way or another,” he says. “Thank you for bringing up the race card I never hear that.”

Watts is later heard crying and yelling as her boyfriend has a conversation with the officers. Lucas, a celebrity chef, explained that he presented his own ID without conflict "because of his past experience with the law." 

“I was sitting in that back of this cop car, filled with adrenaline, my wrist bleeding in pain, and it occurred to me, that even there, I STILL HAD POWER OVER MY OWN SPIRIT,” she wrote on Facebook.

“I knew that I had done nothing wrong, that I wasn’t harming anyone, so I walked away."

Watts reiterated her stance in an interview with CNN Monday. 

The actress maintained that she did nothing wrong, emphasizing that she and Lucas were "fully clothed" and within their rights to show affection publicly. She also claimed the police officer first approached Lucas for her identification.

"He didn't even give me the respect of telling me what happened," she told CNN. "For me, if he would have come to me like 'excuse me ma'am, you seem like a respectable person but someone made a call can we just talk to you for a second,' the whole situation would have been different."

Watts also maintained - knowing that the situation could have been resolved much earlier if she would have presented her ID as asked - that she didn't because she believes "in America and what it stands for." 

"Part of my role as a public figure is to raise awareness and be strong enough to say and do the things that people that maybe don't have the advantages that I have...or aren't strong enough, or don't have the know how, or don't have the awareness to do" she said.

"For me standing up for that constitutional right was a gift and a blessing."

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Hurricane Odile Goes Inland After Hit Near Cabo San Lucas - Bloomberg

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Hurricane Odile Goes Inland After Hit Near Cabo San Lucas - Bloomberg

Hurricane Odile, the strongest to hit Baja California Sur in decades, weakened slightly as it battered the Mexican peninsula with high winds and rain.

Odile went ashore near the resort city of Cabo San Lucas at about 10:45 p.m. Mexico City time yesterday as a Category 3 storm with winds of 125 miles (201 kilometers) per hour, tying 1967 storm Olivia as the area’s most powerful at landfall in the satellite era, said the U.S. National Hurricane Center.

It is now a Category 2 system about 40 miles west of La Paz, Mexico, with top winds of 110 mph.

“The hurricane should steadily weaken during the next few days while the circulation and inner-core continue to interact with the Baja California peninsula,” the center said.

Mexico declared a red alert along the coastline as well as the mainland as the country prepared to celebrate its independence day holiday. As of 10 p.m. yesterday in Mexico City, 18 flights, or about 30 percent, in and out of Los Cabos International Airport had been canceled, according to FlightAware, a Houston-based airline tracking company.

Hurricane conditions will spread north over the peninsula today and tomorrow, the Miami center said. Six to 12 inches (15 to 30 centimeters) of rain are forecast and storm surge may reach 6 to 10 feet (1.8 to 3 meters) high, with waves pounding in on top of that, said Steve Wistar, a meteorologist at AccuWeather Inc. in State College, Pennsylvania.

Tropical systems in the Northern Hemisphere spin counter-clockwise, and when added to the forward motion of the storm, this means the northeast side is the most powerful. There is a good chance Odile will cause extensive damage, Wistar said. Hurricane-force winds reach out about 50 miles from its center, and tropical-storm strength winds extend about 185 miles.

Residents were told to leave their homes if they didn’t feel safe and know the route to a temporary shelter in case they decided to leave later, according to Mexico’s civil protection agency. Everyone was told to stay indoors.

Storms of this strength can damage buildings and block roads as trees are uprooted, according to the center. Toppled power lines can cause outages lasting for days.

Widespread heavy rain is forecast for Baja California Sur, as well as the Mexican states of Colima, Jalisco and western Michoacan to the east, the center said. Isolated regions may receive as much as 18 inches of rain.

The hurricane center calls for Odile to deteriorate into a depression, the weakest form of tropical system, by the end of the week.

The U.S. Southwest has a good chance of getting another round of flooding rain as the moisture from Odile heads north, Wistar said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Brian K. Sullivan in Boston at bsullivan10@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: David Marino at dmarino4@bloomberg.net Charlotte Porter, Stephen Cunningham

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Heineken Rebuffs SABMiller Overture

WSJ.com: US Business

Heineken Rebuffs SABMiller Overture

Updated Sept. 14, 2014 10:41 p.m. ET

Heineken NV said it spurned a takeover approach from global-beer rival SABMiller PLC, saying that the controlling family wants the Dutch brewer to remain independent.

"Heineken has consulted with its majority shareholder and concluded that SABMiller's proposal is nonactionable,'' Heineken said in a written statement Sunday.

The...

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Hillary Clinton in Iowa stirs 2016 speculation - Fox News

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Hillary Clinton in Iowa stirs 2016 speculation - Fox News

Sept. 14, 2014: Hillary and Bill Clinton with retiring Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin at the 37th and final Harkin Steak Fry political event, Indianola, Iowa. (FOX NEWS)

INDIANOLA, Iowa –  Hillary Clinton returned to Iowa on Sunday for the first time since her 2008 Democratic presidential primary loss in the state, telling the crowd at the 37th annual Harkin Steak Fry -- “I’m back.”

Clinton, the clear Democratic frontrunner should she make a 2016 White House bid, was greeted with loud cheers at the fundraising event. The event was held in honor of Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, who is retiring from Congress this year.

The former secretary of state told the crowd of several hundred that her immediate focus is helping fellow Democrats in the midterm elections but that she also thinks about “that other thing,” hinting at a 2016 run.

"It's true, I've been thinking about it," she said. “People get excited about presidential campaigns, look I get excited about presidential campaigns, too.”

Missing in her speech were remarks on President Obama's recent efforts to destroy the Islamic State militant group and on other pressing foreign policy issues.

However, she praised Obama for his attempts to bring the country out of the recession, saying the country is on its way to recovery.

She was joined at the event by husband and former President Bill Clinton, who also spoke.  Clinton urged guests to vote for Democrats on Nov. 4 to "pull this country together, to push this country forward.”

The last time Hillary Clinton was in Iowa she finished third in the state's first-in-the-nation caucus in 2008, behind now-President Obama and John Edwards.    

On Sunday, Clinton delivered a keynote speech that focused on such issues as equal pay for women and increasing the minimum wage. She also thanked Harkin for all of his hard work and talked about the changes he had made during his time in the Senate, particularly his efforts to help people with disabilities.  

Harkin was critical of Clinton in a recent ABC News interview, saying he still had questions about her foreign and economic policies.

However, on Sunday, Harkin stood side by side with the Clintons, then introduced Hillary by talking about her accomplishments in the Senate and as secretary of state.  

Though Clinton has not officially made a decision about a run for the White House, many are already building a network for her run. The Super PAC Ready for Hillary has been drumming up support across Iowa and other key voting states.

Clinton finished her speech by telling the crowd she would not “let another seven years go by.”

“It’s time to write a new chapters in the American dream,” she said.

Lauren Blanchard is part of the Junior Reporter program at Fox News. Get more information on the program here and follow them on Twitter: @FNCJrReporters

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Miss New York Chosen as Miss America 2015 - ABC News

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Miss New York Chosen as Miss America 2015 - ABC News

Miss New York Kira Kazantsev was named the new Miss America Sunday night, marking the third year in a row that a contestant from her state has walked away with the crown in the nationally televised pageant.

Kazantsev received the crown at Atlantic City's Boardwalk Hall from outgoing Miss America — and Miss New York — Nina Davuluri.

For her talent performance, Kazantsev sang Pharrell Williams' "Happy" while sitting cross-legged on the stage and banging a red plastic cup on the floor.

She named combating sexual assault in the military as the issue about which she would want female U.S. Senators to press their male counterparts.

The first runner-up was Miss Virginia Courtney Paige Garrett.

Other top 5 finalists were Miss Arkansas Ashton Jo Campbell; Miss Florida Victoria Cowen; and Miss Massachusetts Lauren Kuhn.

Miss North Dakota, Jacky Arness was chosen by her peers as Miss Congeniality.

The pageant shone a positive light on the struggling seaside gambling resort, which has been in the national news for all the wrong reasons lately: a rash of casino closings, thousands of unemployed workers, and a domestic violence case involving a former NFL star.

For three hours Sunday night, America got a different look at Atlantic City. The Miss America pageant presented an upbeat view of the city where it began in 1921.

It featured iconic Atlantic City visuals including its beach, Boardwalk, the Steel Pier, Black Fish Pier near Brigantine, and the Atlantic City Beach Patrol station.

"Atlantic City is facing a challenging economic climate and our hearts go out to all of those who have lost their jobs," said Sam Haskell III, CEO of the Miss America organization. "We hope that our Miss America telecast ... will generate great interest for Atlantic City on a national scale as we showcase their beautiful beaches and Boardwalk."

There has been no shortage of compelling story lines leading up to the selection of the next Miss America, including the way personal tragedy has shaped the public service platforms of several contestants. The brother of Miss Wisconsin Raeanna Johnson killed himself after a secret addiction to methamphetamine. Her platform was the impact of substance abuse on the family.

The father of Miss Kansas Amanda Sasek killed himself when she was 17. Her platform was helping people find their strengths. And Miss Delaware Brittany Lewis is still waiting for an arrest to be made in the 2010 slaying of her sister. Her platform is combating domestic violence.

There was drama and even some low-brow comedy leading up to the finale. Miss Rhode Island, Ivy DePew, collapsed onstage during the first night of preliminary competition, but made it back the next night after two trips to the hospital for dehydration.

And supermodel and business mogul Kathy Ireland took the stage to burp on command on a dare from pageant host Dena Blizzard on the second night.

———

Wayne Parry can be reached at http://twitter.com/WayneParryAC

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Sweden Elects New Center-Left Government - Wall Street Journal

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Sweden Elects New Center-Left Government - Wall Street Journal

Updated Sept. 14, 2014 8:35 p.m. ET

STOCKHOLM—Sweden's Social Democrat Leader Stefan Lofven defeated incumbent Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt in parliamentary elections on Sunday, signaling the return of a left-leaning government after eight years in opposition.

The shift reflected concerns among the Swedish electorate that Mr. Reinfeldt's pro-market policies have chipped away at the country's cherished welfare state. Mr. Reinfeldt said he would resign as prime...

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Bay Area Nudist Camp Accused of Stealing Water

NBC News U.S. News

Bay Area Nudist Camp Accused of Stealing Water

[unable to retrieve full-text content]No arrests were made or citations issued Thursday, but rangers dismantled a hose leading from the resort to the waterfall.

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Scots independence battle reaches fever pitch on streets and screens - Reuters

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Scots independence battle reaches fever pitch on streets and screens - Reuters

By Alistair Smout

GLASGOW Scotland Sun Sep 14, 2014 2:35pm EDT

1 of 13. Alistair Darling (C), the leader of the campaign to keep Scotland part of the United Kingdom, appears with Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond (R) on the BBC's Andrew Marr Show in Edinburgh, this photograph received via the BBC in London September 14, 2014.

Credit: Reuters/Jeff Overs/BBC/Handout via Reuters

GLASGOW Scotland (Reuters) - Thousands of independence supporters took to the streets of Scotland's largest city, Glasgow, on Sunday as polls showed the rival camps running desperately close just five days before a referendum which could bring the break-up of the United Kingdom.

Separatist and unionist leaders worked across the country to woo undecided voters among the four million people Scots and Scotland residents who will vote on their future on Thursday.

Scottish National Party leader Alex Salmond, who has spearheaded the drive for independence, said he was confident the "Yes" campaign would win.

"We're not aiming to win by one vote. We're aiming to achieve a substantial majority if we can," he said on the BBC.

Alistair Darling, a former British finance minister and leader of the "Better Together" campaign, warned that if Scots vote to split from the United Kingdom, it would be an irreversible decision that would bring economic doom and gloom.

With promises from British political leaders of greater powers for Scotland in the event of a "No" vote, Scots could have the best of both worlds, Darling said.

And Queen Elizabeth, coming out of a Sunday morning church service near her Scottish residence Balmoral, told a well-wisher she hoped Scots would think very carefully about the future.

In Glasgow, the blue badges of the "Yes" to independence campaign dominated central Buchanan Street, with a convoy of cars driving through the downtown waving "Yes" banners and tooting horns. Buskers also sang in support of independence and a bagpipe-and-drum band drew a large crowd.

The Glasgow vote will be crucial to the result, given the city's size.

Thousands of people marched to the BBC headquarters, complaining that the state-run broadcaster was biased against the "Yes" campaign.

"We pay our license fees. We don't want them to favour us - we were just marching for an impartial state broadcaster," said Liz, a teacher.

Salmond has frequently accused the BBC - which could be carved up if Scotland votes for independence - of siding with the unionists. A BBC spokesperson said the corporation has been "rigorously impartial".

But the incident showed the high emotions and divisions stirred by the referendum, which could result in the end of the 307-year-old union with England and the break-up of the United Kingdom.

"No one wants to forget what we achieved together during the two World Wars. But where's the vision for the future?" said Ian, an IT manager from Glasgow who had been on the march.

Independence supporters say it is time for Scotland to choose its own leaders and rule itself, free of control from London and politicians they say ignore their views and needs.

"No" campaigners say Scotland is more secure and prosperous as part of the United Kingdom and the end of the union would destroy three centuries of bonds and shared history as well as bring in economic and financial hardship.

More than 4 million Scots as well as English and foreign residents, from the Highands and Islands to Glasgow's gritty inner city estates, are eligible to vote. The question on the ballot paper will ask simply: "Should Scotland be an independent country?"

Out of four new polls, three showed those in favour of maintaining the union with a lead of between 2 and 8 percentage points. But an ICM poll conducted over the Internet showed supporters of independence in the lead with 54 percent and unionists on 46 percent.

RELOCATION PLANS

Last week, Scottish–based banks including RBS (RBS.L) said they had plans to relocate should independence happen, big retailers spoke of possible price rises north of the border and Germany's Deutsche Bank warned of economic meltdown.

Salmond has dismissed this as a London-contrived campaign of bullying and scare-mongering. However, the pound had dropped on market concerns of a "Yes" victory and investors have pulled billions out of British financial assets.

The biggest financial question is what currency an independent Scotland would use. Salmond insists it would keep the pound in a currency union with the rump UK, but Prime Minister David Cameron and others have ruled this out.

Until September, all polls but one in 2013 had shown the unionists with a comfortable lead. But such is the gravity of the situation that finance minister George Osborne cancelled a trip to the G20 meeting in Australia after the vote. Bank of England Governor Mark Carney will leave the G20 meeting early.

The Queen's comment was taken by unionists as a sign of support for Scotland remaining within the United Kingdom. A Buckingham Palace source stressed that the queen was constitutionally above politics and would express no view.

Salmond has said she should stay on as Queen of Scots if independence happens.

Meanwhile the head of the Church of Scotland appealed for Scots to put their differences aside and reconcile after the referendum, whatever the outcome.

In a nationally-broadcast sermon at Edinburgh’s St. Mary's Episcopal Cathedral, Reverend John Chalmers urged Scots to vote.

But he added: "The real success of next Thursday will be that...every voice will continue to play its part in shaping the kind of Scotland that people in Scotland vote for," he said.

(Additional reporting by Guy Faulconbridge, Writing by Angus MacSwan, Editing by Ralph Boulton)

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11:42 | 0 comments

California wildfire rages, leaving state on edge

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California wildfire rages, leaving state on edge

[unable to retrieve full-text content]Two new wildfires in Northern California destroyed at least three buildings and forced evacuations of hundreds of homes. NBC’s Hallie Jackson reports.

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08:39 | 0 comments

Scottish independence: Crowd protests against 'BBC bias' - BBC News

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Scottish independence: Crowd protests against 'BBC bias' - BBC News

14 September 2014
Last updated at 16:11

A large crowd has gathered outside of BBC Scotland's Glasgow HQ to protest about the broadcaster's coverage of the referendum.

The protesters said BBC coverage had been biased against independence.

It is the fifth time such a protest has been held, according to organisers.

A BBC spokesperson said: "We believe our coverage has been fair and impartial and has adhered fully to the requirements of our Editorial and Referendum Guidelines."

Protesters gathered outside the BBC's Pacific Quay offices at about 14:00.

They draped a banner over the entrance to the building calling for the BBC's political editor Nick Robinson to be sacked.

Earlier this week, Mr Robinson clashed with First Minister Alex Salmond at a media conference.

Mr Salmond accused Mr Robinson of "heckling" him at a press conference in Edinburgh for international journalists

Mr Robinson was later accused by "Yes" campaigners of producing a report that wrongly claimed Mr Salmond had ignored his question.

The exchange came after the BBC reported that the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) would move its registered headquarters to London if Scots voted for independence.

Mr Salmond said the Treasury had leaked details of an RBS notice to markets in breach of financial regulations.

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08:39 | 0 comments

US Man in North Korea Given 6 Years of Hard Labor - TIME

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US Man in North Korea Given 6 Years of Hard Labor - TIME

TIME World North Korea
US Man in North Korea Given 6 Years of Hard Labor
Miller was charged under Article 64 of the North Korean criminal code, which is for espionage and can carry a sentence of five to 10 years

PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) — North Korea’s Supreme Court on Sunday sentenced a 24-year-old American man to six years of hard labor for entering the country illegally to commit espionage.

At a trial that lasted about 90 minutes, the court said Matthew Miller, of Bakersfield, California, tore up his tourist visa at Pyongyang’s airport upon arrival on April 10 and admitted to having the “wild ambition” of experiencing prison life so that he could secretly investigate North Korea’s human rights situation.

Miller, who looked thin and pale at the trial and was dressed completely in black, is one of three Americans now being held in North Korea.

Showing no emotion throughout the proceedings, Miller waived the right to a lawyer and was handcuffed before being led from the courtroom after his sentencing. The court, comprising a chief judge flanked by two “people’s assessors,” ruled it would not hear any appeals to its decision.

Earlier, it had been believed that Miller had sought asylum when he entered North Korea. During the trial, however, the prosecution argued that was a ruse and that Miller also falsely claimed to have secret information about the U.S. military in South Korea on his iPad and iPod.

Miller was charged under Article 64 of the North Korean criminal code, which is for espionage and can carry a sentence of five to 10 years, though harsher punishments can be given for more serious cases.

The Associated Press was allowed to attend the trial.

A trial is expected soon for one of the other Americans being held, Jeffrey Fowle, who entered the North as a tourist but was arrested in May for leaving a Bible at a sailor’s club in the city of Chongjin. The third American, Korean-American missionary Kenneth Bae, is serving out a 15-year sentence for alleged “hostile acts.”

All three have appealed to the U.S. government to send a senior statesman to Pyongyang to intervene on their behalf.

During a brief interview with The Associated Press in Pyongyang last week, Miller said he had written a letter to President Barack Obama but had not received a reply.

Fowle, a 56-year-old equipment operator for the city of Moraine, Ohio, said his wife, a hairstylist from Russia, made a written appeal on his behalf to Russian President Vladimir Putin. He said the Russian government responded that it was watching the situation.

The U.S. has repeatedly offered to send its envoy for North Korean human rights issues, Robert King, to Pyongyang to seek the freedom of the detainees, but without success.

Former President Bill Clinton came in 2009 to free a couple of jailed journalists. Jimmy Carter made the trip in 2010 to secure the release of Aijalon Gomes, who had been sentenced to eight years of hard labor for illegally crossing into the country to do missionary work.

In 2011, the State Department’s envoy for North Korean human rights managed to successfully intervene in the case of Korean-American businessman Eddie Yong Su Jun.

The United States has no diplomatic relations with North Korea and strongly warns American citizens against traveling to the country.

Uri Tours, a New Jersey-based travel agency specializing in North Korea tourism that handled the arrangements for Miller, said in an email Sunday that it was working to have Miller returned to his parents in the United States.

“Although we ask a series of tailored questions on our application form designed to get to know a traveler and his/her interests, it’s not always possible for us to foresee how a tourist may behave during a DPRK tour,” the travel agency said in a statement on Friday, referring to North Korea’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. “Unfortunately, there was nothing specific in Mr. Miller’s tour application that would have helped us anticipate this unfortunate outcome.”

The agency said that as a result of the incident, it now routinely requests a secondary contact and reserves the right to contact those references to confirm facts about a potential tourist. It has also added advice warning tourists not to rip up any officially issued documents and “to refrain from any type of proselytizing.”

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06:00 | 0 comments

North Korea sentences US citizen Matthew Todd Miller to six years hard labour - Reuters

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North Korea sentences US citizen Matthew Todd Miller to six years hard labour - Reuters

SEOUL, Sept 14 Sun Sep 14, 2014 5:26am EDT

SEOUL, Sept 14 (Reuters) - North Korea sentenced U.S. citizen Matthew Todd Miller to six years hard labour for committing "hostile acts" as a tourist to the isolated country, a statement carried by state media said on Sunday.

Miller, from Bakersfield, California, and in his mid-20s, entered North Korea in April this year whereupon he tore up his tourist visa and demanded Pyongyang grant him asylum, according to a release from state media at the time.

North Korea has yet to announce a trial date for fellow U.S. citizen Jeffrey Fowle, 56, from Miamisburg, Ohio, who was arrested in May this year for leaving a bible under the toilet of a sailor's club in the eastern port city of Chongjin.

U.S. missionary Kenneth Bae has been held by the isolated country since December 2012 and is currently serving a sentence of 15 years hard labour for crimes North Korea said amounted to a plot to overthrow the state. (Reporting by James Pearson; Editing by Kim Coghill)

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02:33 | 0 comments

Firefighters Believe SoCal Blaze Began in Backyard

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Firefighters Believe SoCal Blaze Began in Backyard

[unable to retrieve full-text content]Fire officials believe the Silverado Fire, which has burned 1,600 acres and caused mandatory evacuations in Orange County, began in someone's backyard.

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'Global action needed to counter Islamic State' - Daily Times

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'Global action needed to counter Islamic State' - Daily Times

CAIRO: Egypt’s foreign minister said on Saturday ties existed between Islamic State, the group holding large parts of Iraq and Syria, and other militants in the region and that global action was needed to counter the threat.
Sameh Shukri, speaking at a Cairo news conference with US. Secretary of State John Kerry, said regional militant groups shared the same ideology and must be dealt with.
Egypt’s call for international action could bolster Kerry’s bid to gather support for President Barack Obama’s plan to strike both sides of the Syrian-Iraqi frontier to defeat Islamic State Sunni fighters.
“Ultimately this extremist ideology is shared by all terrorist groups. We detect ties of cooperation between them and see a danger as it crosses borders,” said Shukri.
“We believe that rejecting terrorism is a collective responsibility of all members of the international community. There should be definite steps to achieve this target.”
Kerry won backing on Thursday for a “coordinated military campaign” against Islamic State from 10 Arab countries — Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and six Gulf states including rich rivals Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
But it is unclear what role individual nations will play.
Kerry said on Saturday that Egypt, seen as the intellectual centre of the Arab world, has a critical role to play in countering Islamic State’s ideology.
The United States wants Egypt to use its leading Islamic authority Al-Azhar, a thousand-year-old seat of religious learning, to send a message of moderation across the Middle East to counter Islamic State’s extremist ideology. “As an intellectual and cultural capital of the Muslim world, Egypt has a critical role to play in publicly renouncing the ideology ISIL disseminates,” said Kerry, referring to the group by its former name Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant.
Kerry’s message in Cairo comes two days after he urged Gulf Arab foreign ministers to suppress all financing of Islamic State, including private money in countries such as Qatar and Kuwait where U.S. officials say enforcement has been weak.
The United States called on each country to work with clerics to convey a message that Islamic State’s ideas are contrary to Islam, and to use their influence on regional television stations to broadcast anti-extremist programming.
Egyptian security officials fear they face a threat from Egyptian militants based across the border in Libya and from the Sinai-based Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis, Egypt’s most dangerous militant group. Both are linked to or inspired by Islamic State.
“We are working with international efforts to combat terrorism whether in Libya or Iraq or any other Arab country,” said Shukri.
Obama’s plan to fight Islamic State simultaneously in Iraq and Syria thrusts the United States directly into the midst of two different wars, in which nearly every country in the region has a stake, alliances have shifted and strategy is dominated by Islam’s 1,300-year-old rift between Sunnis and Shi’ites.
Islamic State is made up of Sunni militants, who are fighting a Shi’ite-led government in Iraq and a government in Syria led by members of a Shi’ite offshoot sect.
In Syria, Turkey has backed mainly Sunni rebels fighting against President Bashar al-Assad. Although it is alarmed by Islamic State’s rise, Turkey is wary about any military action that might weaken Assad’s foes, and is concerned about strengthening Kurds in Iraq and Syria.
Lebanese Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil told Reuters some Arab states at talks in Jeddah on Thursday had proposed expanding the campaign to fight other Islamist groups besides Islamic State, a move Turkey would also probably oppose.
Egypt would welcome any move that would further isolate the Muslim Brotherhood, the Islamist group that the army removed from power last year.
Egyptian authorities have cracked down on the Brotherhood, killing hundreds of members and jailing thousands of others. Egypt has declared the Brotherhood a terrorist group.
Qatar has asked seven senior figures from Egypt’s outlawed Muslim Brotherhood to leave the country, the movement said on Saturday, following months of pressure on the Gulf Arab state from its neighbours to stop backing the Islamists. 

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20:36 | 0 comments

Search Called Off for Pilot in Fighter Jet Collision

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Search Called Off for Pilot in Fighter Jet Collision

The U.S. Navy suspended the search Saturday for a Navy pilot still missing after two FA/18 fighter jets collided Friday in the western Pacific west of Wake Island, according to the U.S. 7th Fleet. The pilot is presumed dead. "This is an exceptionally difficult time for the friends and family of the missing pilot and the Navy community," said Rear Adm. Christopher Grady, Commander, Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group.

The two FA/18s collided seven miles from the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson, which they were preparing to land on, according to the Navy. One pilot was rescued by helicopter shortly after and has since been treated aboard the USS Carl Vinson. Neither pilot has been identified pending notification of family.

John Philip Wagner, Jr. / US Navy via AP

A MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter lands on the flight deck of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson during the search for the missing pilot on Sept. 12.

— Courtney Kube and Elisha Fieldstadt

First published September 13 2014, 2:02 PM

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18:00 | 0 comments