LUSAKA, Zambia (AP) -- Police in Zambia say at least 51 people have been killed after a bus crashed into a semi-truck north of the country’s capital of Lusaka.
China's new leader urges 'sharp' party criticism
BEIJING (AP) -- China’s new leader said the ruling Communist Party should tolerate “sharp” outside criticism, in comments that are being viewed skeptically by a public accustomed to pervasive censorship.
Swiss village in W.Va. chases away Old Man Winter, parties before Lent with Fasnacht festival
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – New Orleans has Mardi Gras. Deep in the mountains of West Virginia, the descendants of Swiss and German immigrants have Fasnacht. It’s smaller by thousands and colder by about 40 degrees, but it’s more than just a last hurrah before Lent.
Muslim US Air Force vet headed to Qatar says he was barred from boarding flight in Oklahoma
OKLAHOMA CITY – A Muslim U.S. Air Force veteran, who had trouble entering the country last year to visit his ailing mother, was barred Wednesday from boarding a flight in Oklahoma City to return to his home in Qatar.
Detroit Symphony Orchestra launches first Beethoven festival in 36 years, starting Friday
DETROIT – The Detroit Symphony Orchestra is launching its first Beethoven festival in 36 years this month.
Fran O'Leary brings wealth of experience, savvy to role as Toronto FC assistant
ORLANDO, Fla. – Since becoming Ryan Nelsen’s right-hand man at Toronto FC a month ago, assistant coach Fran O’Leary has only managed to get home to Maine for a day.
National Park Service offers $1,000 reward for information on vandals at Great Smoky Mountains
GATLINBURG, Tenn. – The National Park Service is offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for vandalizing stone walls at the Sinks in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The Sinks is a roadside waterfall that attracts visitors throughout the year who want to view the 15-foot cascade.
Shoppers Drug Mart sales rise, profit tops views
TORONTO (Reuters) – Shoppers Drug Mart Corp , Canada’s leading pharmacy chain, reported a solid fourth-quarter sales increase on Thursday and profit that slightly exceeded expectations, sending its shares higher. Sales at established stores, an important measure for retailers, rose 2.7 percent in the fourth quarter ended December 29. Pharmacy sales rose 3.7 percent to C$1.22 billion as the chain filled more prescriptions, though pharmacy margins fell and overall profit was little changed from the year-earlier quarter. …
South Africa charges Congo rebels with planning coup
PRETORIA (Reuters) – Nineteen Congolese rebels, including a naturalized U.S. citizen, were charged in a South African court on Thursday with plotting a coup against the government in Kinshasa which they planned to finance, if successful, through mineral concessions. The group, who appeared in court in Pretoria, were led by U.S.-Congolese citizen James Kazongo and had been under surveillance by an elite South African police unit for months before their arrest this week, prosecutor Shaun Abrahams said. …
Russia's Putin sacks Olympic official over Games delays
SOCHI, Russia (Reuters) – Vladimir Putin fired a top Russian Olympic official on Thursday after publicly ridiculing him on a visit to half-finished sports complexes planned for a winter Olympics dogged by reports of corruption and construction delays. The humiliation of Akhmed Bilalov, 42, stamped President Putin's authority over the 2014 Sochi Games and underlined the importance he attaches to a global event he hopes will show how far Russia has come since the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. … Jazz pianist Oscar Peterson's widow sues singer Hilary Kole for copyright infringement
NEW YORK, N.Y. – The widow of jazz pianist Oscar Peterson has filed a $1 million lawsuit against singer Hilary Kole for copyright infringement.
Iran's supreme leader shuts down possibility of direct nuclear talks with US
Iran’s supreme leader today rejected the possibility of direct talks with the United States, nixing a proposal by Washington to ease the stalemate over Iran’s nuclear program.
ECB says will monitor impact of euro strength
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – The European Central Bank will monitor the impact of a strengthening euro on the currency bloc's economy but said it was not a policy target and showed growing confide nce in the region. After the ECB left its main interest rate at 0.75 percent on Thursday, ECB chief Mario Draghi said the exchange rate was near to its long-term average but went further than many analysts had expected. "The appreciation is, in a sense, a sign of return of confidence in the euro," Draghi told a news conference. … Nepal's Maoists set terms to end political deadlock
KATHMANDU (Reuters) – Nepal's Maoist party on Thursday set out for the first time the conditions under which its prime minister would resign, an offer it said was aimed at ending a political deadlock with opposition parties that has paralyzed one of the world's poorest countries. But hours after the offer was made, leaders from two major opposition parties said they saw it as a ploy for the government to remain in power, rather than being a serious attempt to break the political impasse. … Putin: Fire senior Russian Olympic official
SOCHI, Russia (AP) -- A year before the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics begin, President Vladimir Putin has demanded that a senior member of the Russian Olympic Committee be fired. Los Angeles police say suspect in overnight Riverside cop killing is ex-officer
LOS ANGELES, Calif. – A former Los Angeles police officer sought for two weekend killings -- and who threatened to kill police -- is a suspect in an overnight shooting in nearby Riverside that killed one officer and critically wounded another, police said Thursday.
EU leaders seen shunning growth for subsidies in budget deal
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – European Union leaders began two days of high-pressure talks on a long-term budget on Thursday, with efforts to refocus spending on growth likely to be thwarted by demands for farm subsidies. The negotiations on the 2014-2020 budget, which will assign nearly 1 trillion euros of spending, pit the EU’s more fiscally conservative northern countries against those in the south and east that want money for infrastructure and agriculture. Arriving for the talks, German Chancellor Angela Merkel described the balancing act that EU leaders will have to make. …
Islamic summit backs Mali government, omits France
CAIRO (Reuters) – Leaders of Muslim nations declared support on Thursday for the unity and territorial integrity of Mali and condemned terrorism in the west African state but said nothing of French military intervention to drive out Islamist fighters. A resolution adopted at a two-day summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation backed the deployment of an international military mission in Mali under African leadership and called for a roadmap for presidential and parliamentary elections. … SAfrica prosecutor: Congo rebels wanted coup, war
PRETORIA, South Africa (AP) -- Nineteen alleged members of a Congolese rebel group -- including one U.S. citizen -- sought outside help in their effort to overthrow Congolese President Joseph Kabila, offering mining rights in their resource-rich country in exchange for weapons and training, a prosecutor said Thursday. Pussy Riot appeal conviction to European Court
MOSCOW (AP) -- Lawyers for three members of the f eminist punk group Pussy Riot have contested their convictions in the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. 
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