Nation World - Courant.com

Yahoo buying Tumblr for $1.1 billion, vows not to screw it up

Mon, 20 May 2013 17:39:02 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Yahoo Inc will buy blogging service Tumblr for $1.1 billion cash, giving the Internet pioneer a much-needed social media platform to reach a younger generation of users and breathe new life into its ailing brand.

Federal immigration-services union joins opposition to Senate bill

By Brian Bennett — Mon, 20 May 2013 17:13:00 GMT

WASHINGTON – A labor union that represents federal officers who vet immigration applications has decided to oppose the immigration overhaul winding through the Senate, saying provisions in the bill could lead to fraud.

Pressure builds on officials to take heat for IRS scandal

Jeff Mason and Thomas Ferraro — Mon, 20 May 2013 17:08:02 GMT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Pressure was building on Monday for the Obama administration to fire more people linked to the Internal Revenue Service's extra scrutiny of conservative groups, possibly including another top IRS official.

More poor people now live in U.S. suburbs than cities - study

Mon, 20 May 2013 16:58:00 GMT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of people living in poverty in U.S. suburbs surpassed the number of poor in cities over the past decade, driven by strong growth in overall suburban populations, according to an analysis released on Monday.

More severe storms, tornadoes expected across central U.S.

Mon, 20 May 2013 16:17:02 GMT

OKLAHOMA CITY (Reuters) - The central United States braced for another round of violent weather on Monday after high winds, hail, and tornadoes struck the region over the weekend, killing one man and injuring more than 20 people.

Arias jury to weigh possible death sentence in Arizona murder trial

Mon, 20 May 2013 16:00:00 GMT

PHOENIX (Reuters) - Jodi Arias, facing the possible death penalty for the murder of an ex-boyfriend in Arizona, was due back in court on Monday for the final phase of a four-month-long trial.

Supreme Court to hear prayer case

By David G. Savage — Mon, 20 May 2013 14:20:00 GMT

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court will revisit the issue of church-state separation and decide whether a town council can begin its monthly meetings with a prayer from a Christian pastor.

Powerful tornadoes strike in four central U.S. states

Chris Francescani — Mon, 20 May 2013 14:12:04 GMT

(Reuters) - A massive storm front swept north through the central United States on Sunday, hammering the region with fist-sized hail, blinding rain and tornadoes, including a half-mile wide twister that struck near Oklahoma City. News reports said at least one person had died.

Thirty Hezbollah fighters killed in Syrian town: activists

Mon, 20 May 2013 11:34:02 GMT

AMMAN (Reuters) - About 30 fighters from the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah and 20 Syrian soldiers and militiamen loyal to President Bashar al-Assad were killed in heavy fighting with rebels in the town of Qusair, Syrian activists said on Monday.

Winning ticket for $590.5 million Powerball lottery sold in Florida

Karen Brooks — Mon, 20 May 2013 11:09:00 GMT

(Reuters) - A single winning ticket for a record Powerball lottery jackpot worth $590.5 million was sold in Florida, organizers said late on Saturday, but there was no immediate word about who won one of the largest jackpots in U.S. history.

Suicide bomber kills senior official, 14 others in Afghan north

Mon, 20 May 2013 11:00:00 GMT

POL-E-KHOMRI, Afghanistan (Reuters) - A suicide bomber blew up a senior official and 14 others outside a government office in the northern Afghan province of Baghlan on Monday, police said.

Iran hangs two spies working for Israel and U.S.: report

Mon, 20 May 2013 10:48:00 GMT

DUBAI (Reuters) - Iranian authorities executed two men on Sunday convicted of working for Israeli and U.S. spy agencies, Iran's Fars news agency reported.

North Korea fires sixth missile in three days

Jane Chung — Mon, 20 May 2013 10:43:00 GMT

SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea fired two short-range missiles on Monday, making six launches in three days, and it condemned South Korea for criticizing what it said were its legitimate military drills.

Car bombs kill at least 31 in Iraq

Mon, 20 May 2013 07:42:03 GMT

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - At least 20 people were killed by a series of car bombs in mainly Shi'ite districts of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, on Monday and 11 others were killed by attacks in the southern city of Basra, police and medics said.

Officials warn of commuter chaos from Connecticut derailment

Richard Weizel — Mon, 20 May 2013 02:10:03 GMT

BRIDGEPORT, Connecticut (Reuters) - Thousands of Connecticut commuters should brace for travel chaos on Monday as Metro-North workers repair damage on the United States' busiest rail line caused by the collision of two trains, officials warned on Sunday.

For Detroit in crisis, next six weeks determine bankruptcy fate

Bernie Woodall and Karen Pierog — Mon, 20 May 2013 00:09:02 GMT

DETROIT (Reuters) - Bond restructurings, negotiated settlements with bondholders and bond insurers, and tough talk with unionized workers are on the agenda as Detroit's emergency financial manager tries to meet a self-imposed, six-week deadline to decide whether the city can get through its financial crisis without a bankruptcy filing.

Hezbollah steps up Syria battle, Israel threatens more strikes

Khaled Yacoub Oweis — Sun, 19 May 2013 22:15:04 GMT

AMMAN (Reuters) - Lebanese Hezbollah militants attacked a Syrian rebel-held town alongside Syrian troops on Sunday and Israel threatened more attacks on Syria to rein the militia in, highlighting the risks of a wider regional conflict if planned peace talks fail.

Shooting death of gay man rocks New York's cradle of gay rights

Anna Hiatt — Sun, 19 May 2013 22:09:00 GMT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Greenwich Village, the birthplace of the U.S. gay rights movement, remained in shock on Sunday over the shooting death of a gay man by a gunman who police said uttered anti-gay slurs before targeting the victim.

Female hostage died from police bullet in New York standoff: official

Brendan O'Brien — Sun, 19 May 2013 20:18:00 GMT

(Reuters) - A 21-year-old university student who was taken hostage in her apartment and then shot to death during a police standoff with an armed robber on New York's Long Island was killed by a bullet fired from an officer's gun, investigators said on Sunday.

Obama urges Morehouse College graduates to help others

By Paul Richter — Sun, 19 May 2013 18:48:00 GMT

WASHINGTON — President Obama urged graduates of a celebrated historically black college Sunday to use their education to help others and to work for "something larger than yourself," citing the example of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.

Yahoo's board is said to OK buying Tumblr for $1.1 billion in cash

By Jessica Guynn — Sun, 19 May 2013 17:19:00 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO -- Yahoo's board of directors has approved a $1.1-billion cash acquisition of blogging site Tumblr.

Upmarket Pakistan district votes again as Imran Khan decries killing

Katharine Houreld — Sun, 19 May 2013 17:06:04 GMT

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - An upmarket constituency of Pakistan's violence-plagued city of Karachi voted again under tight security on Sunday, a day after gunmen killed a senior politician from a reformist party in the district and a week after general elections.

Obama to discuss al Qaeda, drones, Guantanamo Bay in Thursday speech

Steve Holland — Sun, 19 May 2013 15:49:00 GMT

ATLANTA (Reuters) - President Barack Obama, under fire for security lapses at a U.S. mission in Libya, will in a speech on Thursday lay out his wide-ranging counter-terrorism policy, from the controversial use of drones to efforts to close the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Bangladesh court orders action against factory owner in November fire

Sun, 19 May 2013 14:03:00 GMT

DHAKA (Reuters) - A Bangladesh court on Sunday banned the owner of a garment factory that was destroyed in a fire in November from leaving the country as anger builds up over a string of deadly incidents in which thousands have died.

Investigators examine fractured rail in Connecticut train crash

Sun, 19 May 2013 01:30:00 GMT

BRIDGEPORT, Connecticut (Reuters) - A fractured segment of track has been found on the rail line of a Metro-North passenger train from New York that derailed in Connecticut and struck another commuter train, injuring more than 70 people, investigators said on Saturday.