CANBERRA (Reuters) – Apple Inc has been ordered to appear before Australia's parliament with fellow technology giants Microsoft Inc and Adobe Systems Inc to explain why local consumers pay so muc h for their products, despite the strong Aussie dollar. Broadening a row between the world's most valuable company and Australian lawmakers over corporate taxes paid on Apple's operations, Apple executives were formally summonsed on Monday to front a parliamentary committee in Canberra on March 22. … Insight: Has Volkswagen discovered the Holy Grail of carmakers?
BERLIN/DETROIT (Reuters) – Ulrich Hackenberg isn't yet a household name but if Volkswagen's $70 billion bet on his big idea pays off, he may join the likes of Henry Ford, Alfred Sloan and Taiichi Ohno in the canon of auto industry pioneers. Since the heyday of Henry Ford and his Model T, the world's automakers have considered the "global car" to be their Holy Grail – the same basic design that can be built, in subtle variations, and sold in different markets. … Sudan, Darfur rebels sign ceasefire deal in Qatar: QNA
DOHA (Reuters) – The government of Sudan has signed a ceasefire deal in Qatar with a main Darfur rebel group in a fresh bid to end a decade-old conflict in western Sudan, Qatar’s state news agency QNA reported late on Sunday. Years of international efforts have failed to end a rebellion in Darfur, where mostly non-Arab insurgents took up arms in 2003 to fight against what they called the Arab-dominated government’s neglect of the region. …
3 killed in US helicopter crash while filming new reality show for Discovery Channel
LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Three people were killed Sunday in a pre-dawn helicopter crash in a rural area of northern Los Angeles County while filming for a new reality TV show for the Discovery Channel.
Adventurers re-enact Shackleton's Antarctic voyage
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) -- It’s been lauded as one of the greatest survival stories of all-time.
Tornado causes significant damage in Hattiesburg; 13 injured
NEW ORLEANS – Emergency officials say an apparent tornado has caused significant damage in Hattiesburg, Miss., after passing along a main road.
Factbox - Winners in main categories at BAFTA film awards
LONDON (Reuters) – Here is a list of winners in the main categories at the BAFTAs, Britain’s top film awards, which took place in London on Sunday. BEST FILM: “Argo” OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM: “Skyfall” BEST DIRECTOR: Ben Affleck for “Argo” LEADING ACTOR: Daniel Day-Lewis in “Lincoln” LEADING ACTRESS: Emmanuelle Riva in “Amour” SUPPORTING ACTOR: Christoph Waltz in “Django Unchained” SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Anne Hathaway in “Les Miserables” ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: Quentin Tarantino for “Django Unchained” ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: David O. …
Reports confirm fatalities in crash of Cessna near Waskada, Manitoba
WASKADA, Man. – Early reports from the scene confirm an undetermined number of fatalities following the crash of a Cessna aircraft near Waskada, Manitoba.
U.S. Air, AMR near $11 billion merger, deal seen within week : sources
NEW YORK (Reuters) – US Airways Group Inc and AMR Corp are nearing an $11 billion merger that would create the world's largest airline and could announce a deal within a week, after resolving key differences on valuation and management structure, people familiar with the matter said. Under terms of a deal that are still being finalized, US Airways Chief Executive Doug Parker would become CEO, while AMR's Tom Horton would serve as non-executive chairman of the board until spring of 2014, when the combined company holds its first annual meeting, the sources said. … Carnival cruise ship adrift off Mexican coast after fire
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – The Carnival Triumph, a cruise ship owned by Carnival Corp under its Carnival Cruise Lines brand , was adrift 150 miles off southern Mexico's Yucatan peninsula on Sunday after a fire that caused no injuries, the company said in a statement. The engine room fire, which took place in the morning, had been extinguished and the ship was without propulsion, and operating on emergency generator power, the company said. … 
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Gotye, FUN. and Mumford & Sons took home top honors at Sunday night's Grammy Awards, which recognized the work of rap, indie-pop, f olk and rock artists. British folk band Mumford & Sons picked up two Grammys, including the coveted Album of the Year for "Babel." Indie-pop trio FUN. was named Best New Artist and won Song of the Year honors for its hit "We Are Young," featuring Janelle Monae. Australian singer Gotye won three Grammy awards, including Record of the Year for his heartbreak hit "Somebody That I Used to Know," featuring New Zealand singer Kimbra. … 
ALLAHABAD, India (AP) -- The death toll from a stampede in a train station rose to 36 on Monday in a northern India city where millions of devotees had gathered for a Hindu festival that is one of the world's largest religious gatherings. 
LONDON (Reuters) – Ben Affleck's "Argo" was crowned best film at the BAFTAs on Sunday while Daniel Day-Lewis bagged yet another leading actor award for the title role in "Lincoln" as an increasingly familiar awards season script unfolded in London. Affleck also won the best director trophy for "Argo", about the rescue of American hostages in Iran during the 1979 revolution, and the movie is now in pole position to win the biggest movie award of all on Oscar night. "You are remarkable at what you do. … 
MANILA, Philippines (AP) -- The world's largest saltwater crocodile in captivity has died, sending villagers to tears in the backwater southern Philippine town that had started to draw tourists, revenue and development because of the immense reptile. 
LONDON (Reuters) – The British government on Monday intensified its campaign to stop Scotland leaving the United Kingdom, publishing a legal opinion suggesting it would forfeit its member ship of international bodies such as the European Union if it chose independence. The pro-independence Scottish National Party (SNP) that runs Scotland's devolved government plans to hold a referendum on the politically sensitive and emotionally charged subject next year, and has played down the impact of a "Yes" vote on Scotland's international status. … 
AMMAN (Reuters) – Syrian National Coalition leader Moaz Alkhatib said on Sunday he was willing to hold talks with President Bashar al-Assad's representativ es in rebel-held areas of northern Syria to try to end a conflict that has killed about 60,000 people. The aim of the talks would be to find a way for Assad to leave power with the "minimum of bloodshed and destruction", Alkhatib said in a statement published on his Facebook page. … 
LONDON (AP) -- Ben Affleck has won the best-director prize at the British Academy Fil m Awards for his Iran-hostage drama "Argo." 
JERUSALEM (AP) -- Israeli troops detained an Associated Press photographer during West Bank unrest over the weekend, handcuffing him and forcing him to sit on the ground without food or water or access to a bathroom for roughly five hours, according to eyewitness accounts. 
AMMAN (Reuters) – Syrian National Coalition leader Moaz Alkhatib said on Sunday he was willing to hold talks with Bashar al-Assad's representatives in rebel-held areas in northern Syria. The talks' objective would be to find a way for Assad to leave power with the "minimum of bloodshed and destruction", Alkhatib said in a statement published on his Facebook page. "If the regime is so concerned about sovereignty and does not want to venture out of Syrian territories then there is a suitable solution, which is the liberated land in northern Syria," Alkhatib said. "There is an important question. … 
BERLIN (Reuters) – German Education Minister Annette Schavan has done her friend Angela Merkel a good turn by quitting, spar ing the chancellor months of distraction in an election year that has already got off to a bad start. Having been stripped of her doctorate over allegations she copied parts of her thesis 33 years ago, Schavan stepped down on Saturday, saving Merkel the prospect of her friend's fate overshadowing more than seven months of election campaigning. The scandal had already begun to hurt the popularity of Merkel, which has survived earlier high-profile resignations. … 
LONDON (Reuters) – The James Bond movie "Skyfall" beat the musical "Les Miserables" to win the BAFTA award for outstanding British film on Sunday, a rare joy for 007 fans who feel the Ma rtini-loving spy has been long overdue for a major trophy. Judi Dench, who plays spymaster M in "Skyfall", leapt out of her seat with a cry of surprise when the award was announced, kicking off the annual BAFTAs ceremony at the Royal Opera House in London. … 
MANAMA, Bahrain (AP) -- After nearly two years of nonstop unrest, opposing factions in Bahrain are set to open talks to ease an Arab Spring conflict that has run longer than Syria's rebellion and is playing out on the doorstep of the U.S. military's main naval base in the Persia n Gulf.