Egyptians vote on Islamist-inspired constitution

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptians voted on Saturday in the second round of a referendum expected to approve an Islamist-drafted constitution that lays foundations for a transition to democracy but is criticized as divisive by the opposition. Queues formed at some polling stations around the country and voting was extended by four hours to 11 p.m. (2100 GMT). Last week's first round of voting,...

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Football: Downing ends drought as Liverpool thrash Fulham

LIVERPOOL: Liverpool winger Stewart Downing finally ended his Premier League goal drought as the Reds swept to a 4-0 victory over Fulham at Anfield on Saturday.Downing had gone 44 league matches without a goal since joining from Aston Villa in a £20 million deal in 2011 that has been widely ridiculed as a major mistake by then Liverpool boss Kenny Dalglish.Brendan Rodgers, who replaced...

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Sonia’s stand on dalit promotion quota bill is pure drama, Mayawati says

NEW DELHI: Dalit czarina Mayawati ridiculed as "drama" Sonia Gandhi's pursuit of the Samajwadi Party MP, who tore up the 'promotion quota' bill in the Lok Sabha. In an interview with TOI, she said that the Congress took up the quota issue six years too late after the Supreme Court order in Nagaraj case and lacked the sincerity that it displayed on women's reservation bill in the Rajya Sabha in...

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'Fiscal Cliff' Leaves Boehner a Wounded Speaker

John Boehner is a bloodied House speaker following the startling setback that his own fractious Republican troops dealt him in their "fiscal cliff" struggle against President Barack Obama.There's plenty of internal grumbling about the Ohio Republican, especially among conservatives, and lots of buzzing about whether his leadership post is in jeopardy. But it's uncertain whether...

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Italy PM Monti resigns, elections likely in February

ROME (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti tendered his resignation to the president on Friday after 13 months in office, opening the way to a highly uncertain national election in February. The former European commissioner, appointed to lead an unelected government to save Italy from financial crisis a year ago, has kept his own political plans a closely guarded secret but he...

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Cricket: New Zealand trounced in first match

DURBAN: South Africa sent New Zealand crashing to an eight-wicket defeat with 47 balls to spare in the first Twenty20 international at Kingsmead on Friday.Fast bowler Rory Kleinveldt took two early wickets to start a slide from which New Zealand never recovered. They were bowled out for 86 after winning the toss.Kleinveldt took the key wickets of Rob Nicol and captain Brendon McCullum...

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Parliament shows some improvement, passes seven bills

NEW DELHI: In a modest improvement on sessions of Parliament since the winter of 2011, both Houses passed seven bills, including important legislations relating to economic reform and law enforcement. Although the just concluded winter session was marred by disruptions and days were lost due to differences on FDI in multi-brand retail and the quota in promotions bill, Parliament managed to pass amendments...

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AP IMPACT: Big Pharma cashes in on HGH abuse

A federal crackdown on illicit foreign supplies of human growth hormone has failed to stop rampant misuse, and instead has driven record sales of the drug by some of the world's biggest pharmaceutical companies, an Associated Press investigation shows.The crackdown, which began in 2006, reduced the illegal flow of unregulated supplies from China, India and Mexico.But since then, Big Pharma has been...

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Boehner's Take on Fiscal Cliff Deal: 'God Only Knows'

Dec 21, 2012 11:00am Speaker of the House John Boehner bluntly acknowledged Friday morning he did not have the votes to pass his “Plan B” and said the only real solution is a broad agreement to cut spending and reform the tax code. Then he added these words:“How we get there, God only knows.”That about sums up the whole “fiscal cliff” situation after a chaotic Thursday...

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Syrian rebels fight for strategic town in Hama province

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Rebels began to push into a strategic town in Syria's central Hama province on Thursday and laid siege to at least one town dominated by President Bashar al-Assad's minority sect, activists said. The operation risks inflaming already raw sectarian tensions as the 21-month-old revolt against four decades of Assad family rule - during which the president's Alawite sect...

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Ex-IMF head Rato in Spain fraud hearing

MADRID: A Spanish judge questioned former IMF chief Rodrigo Rato Thursday over fraud charges linked to ruined Spanish lender Bankia, a symbol of Spain's financial calamity.Furious yells of "Thief! Rato, go to jail!" met the high-flying financier outside court as demonstrators vented rage at the nationalisation of the bank in which many say they lost savings.He was questioned by a judge...

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Narendra Modi addresses nation after winning Gujarat assembly election

AHMEDABAD: Fresh from the hat-trick in the assembly polls, chief minister Narendra Modi gave women and youth voters the credit for the BJP's thumping win. Addressing a 'vijay sabha' outside BJP headquarters in Khanpur on Thursday, he said if he had committed any 'mistake', he seeks forgiveness from the people. "If there has been a mistake somewhere. If I have erred somewhere, I seek apology from...

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AP IMPACT: Steroids loom in major-college football

WASHINGTON (AP) — With steroids easy to buy, testing weak and punishments inconsistent, college football players are packing on significant weight — 30 pounds or more in a single year, sometimes — without drawing much attention from their schools or the NCAA in a sport that earns tens of billions of dollars for teams.Rules vary so widely that, on any given game day, a team with a strict no-steroid...

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Merry 'Cliffmas'! Chances for a Deficit Deal Dim

The outlook for a deal to avert the "fiscal cliff" by Christmas is increasingly grim, though lawmakers and the White House still have hope for a deficit-reduction compromise by the end of the year.Republicans will move forward tonight with a vote to pass House Speaker John Boehner's so-called "Plan B option" – an extension of current tax rates for Americans making up to $1...

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Clinton not responsible for Benghazi shortcomings: inquiry

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The leaders of an official inquiry into the fatal attack on a U.S. mission in Benghazi, Libya, did not find Secretary of State Hillary Clinton responsible for security lapses even as they outlined widespread failings within her department. The unclassified version of the report, released late Tuesday by the State Department, concluded that the mission was completely...

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Tennis: Levine drops US to represent Canada

MONTREAL: Jesse Levine, ranked 104th on the ATP Tour, will represent his native Canada and no longer compete for the United States, Tennis Canada announced on Wednesday.The 25-year-old left-hander was born in Ottawa and spent the first 13 years of his life growing up in Canada's capital city before moving with his family to Florida.Levine reached a career-high of 69th in the rankings last...

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Presidential pardon saved rapists the noose

NEW DELHI: The rising chorus to make rape an offence punishable by death penalty could be a fraught proposition. There have been at least four cases in the recent past where rapists awarded death penalty managed to escape the noose after the President commuted their sentence to life imprisonment.These include a convict who raped and killed a five-year-old and another who tried to rape a teenager...

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Experts: Kids are resilient in coping with trauma

WASHINGTON (AP) — They might not want to talk about the gunshots or the screams. But their toys might start getting into imaginary shootouts.Last week's school shooting in Connecticut raises the question: What will be the psychological fallout for the children who survived?For people of any age, regaining a sense of security after surviving violence can take a long time. They're at risk for lingering...

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Inside One School's Extraordinary Security Measures

While schools across America reassess their security measures in the wake of the tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., one school outside of Chicago takes safety to a whole new level.The security measures at Middleton Elementary School start the moment you set foot on campus, with a camera-equipped doorbell. When you ring the doorbell, school employees inside are...

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Egypt opposition protests against constitution

CAIRO (Reuters) - Opponents of Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi staged protests in Cairo on Tuesday against an Islamist-backed draft constitution that has divided Egypt but looks set to be approved in the second half of a referendum this weekend. Several hundred protesters outside the presidential palace chanted "Revolution, revolution, for the sake of the constitution" and called on...

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