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By Alan Baldwin MONACO, May 25 (Reuters) - Ferrari's Felipe Massa crashed heavily in an accident-strewn final Monaco Grand Prix practice session on Saturday with Nico Rosberg completing a sweep of fastest times for Mercedes. The Brazilian wrestled with a seemingly unresponsive steering wheel before locking up on the brakes and smashing into the steel guardrail on the pit straight. The Ferrari then plunged nose-first into the energy-absorbing plastic safety barrier at the Ste. ...

LEEDS, England (Reuters) - England won the toss and chose to bat in the second and final test against New Zealand at Headingley on Saturday. England named an unchanged team from the side that won by 170 runs in the first test at Lord's, retaining paceman Steven Finn and leaving out Tim Bresnan. New Zealand called up Doug Bracewell to make an all-seamer attack having declined to take a gamble on spinner Daniel Vettori, who only arrived in England this week as a replacement for the injured Bruce Martin. ...

By Barbara Lewis BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European leaders have decided youth unemployment and the risk of social breakdown are among the toughest challenges they face and finding solutions will be a top priority for the coming months. In a letter released late on Friday, European Council President Herman Van Rompuy said youth unemployment was one of the most pressing issues for the 27-member European Union. ...

TOKYO (Reuters) - A delay in Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his wife moving into their official residence, the site of past assasinations, has revived talk of ghosts in the corridors, prompting the government to deny any knowledge of hauntings. Abe has not moved into the prime minister's official residence for five months since he took power. Asked by an opposition lawmaker about the reported hauntings, the government issued a formal statement on Friday saying it was not aware of ghost sightings, Asahi newspaper and other media reported. ...

By Mia Shanley STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Community patrols and a beefed-up police presence helped to calm violence around Stockholm overnight on Saturday but 20 to 30 cars were still torched in poor immigrant suburbs and serious incidents were reported outside the capital for the first time. The rioting in Stockholm abated after a week of masked youths vandalising schools and police stations, setting cars alight and hurling stones at firefighters, police said. "It was much calmer - rocks weren't being thrown at police or firefighters - and that's a sign that it's calmer. ...

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Between 35 and 40 percent of workers at Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc's Indonesian unit returned to work on Saturday to carry out maintenance work after a tunnel collapse that killed 28 people, a union official said. The resumption of work was a possible sign the firm was gearing up towards restarting operations at the world's No. 2 copper mine. Arizona-based Freeport suspended operations at the remote Papua mine on May 15, at a cost estimated at about $15 million a day in lost production. ...

TOKYO (Reuters) - At least four people, and possibly up to 55, were exposed to radiation when radioactive material leaked during a laboratory experiment in Japan, the facility's operators said on Saturday, although authorities were not told of the leak for two days. The radioactive material also leaked outside the nuclear physics laboratory in Tokaimura, 110 km (65 miles) northeast of Tokyo, during the experiment on Thursday, the Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) said in a statement. The JAEA did not report the leak to the government's nuclear regulator until more than 34 hours later. ...

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Mumbai Police apprehended Gurunath Meiyappan, a key official of the Indian Premier League's (IPL) Chennai franchise, late on Friday in connection with a spot-fixing scandal that has also led to the arrest of three cricketers. Former test bowler Shanthakumaran Sreesanth and two other local cricketers were arrested last week on suspicion of taking money to concede a fixed number of runs and police have intensified investigations to discover the extent of the scandal. ...

By Alan Baldwin MONACO (Reuters) - Truth can be stranger than fiction in Formula One so perhaps it was inevitable that even some regulars were fooled when the launch of a new grand prix team was announced on April 1. Despite a polished website (www.dupontf1.com) and team details, there was no such thing as Dupont F1 - on the racetrack, at least. Julia Wurz, the former Benetton and Renault team public relations executive and wife of Austrian racer Alex, devised the stunt to publicise her debut novel set in the F1 paddock. ...

LONDON (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of Germans will descend on London's Wembley Stadium later on Saturday (1845 GMT) when four-times winners Bayern Munich take on domestic rivals Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League final. The world's most prestigious club soccer match pits unassuming 68-year-old Bayern coach Jupp Heynckes against excitable Dortmund boss Juergen Klopp, 45, in an intriguing clash of styles. ...

By Simon Evans MIAMI (Reuters) - The Indiana Pacers threw open the NBA Eastern Conference finals on Friday, upsetting the Miami Heat with a 97-93 victory to level the best-of-seven series at 1-1. LeBron James scored 36 points for Miami but gave up two crucial turnovers down the stretch that cost the Heat, while Roy Hibbert top-scored for the Pacers with 29 points and Paul George added 22 and produced some outstanding defensive work. ...

By Warren Strobel WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Saddled with Middle East problems ranging from Iran to Syria and beyond, President Barack Obama now faces one that is both old and new: Iraq. Unresolved sectarian tensions, inflamed by the raging civil war in neighbouring Syria, have combined to send violence in Iraq to its highest level since Obama withdrew the last U.S. troops in December 2011, U.S. officials and Middle East analysts say. A Sunni Muslim insurgency against the Shi'ite-led Baghdad government has also been reawakened. ...

RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Brazil's Neymar is on the verge of choosing one of two offers from un-named clubs, reported to be Spanish suitors Barcelona and Real Madrid, after Santos agreed on Friday to transfer him. Santos said they had ended a three-year fight to keep the 21-year-old, Brazil's big hope for next year's World Cup finals, and agreed to a transfer, giving him the right to choose which offer to accept, though a decision was not imminent. ...

Yangon, May 25 (IANS) Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said in a message published in Myanmar official media here Saturday that his current official visit to Myanmar will bring Japan-Myanmar cooperation to even higher level and serve as an opportunity to lay down a foundation for turning a new page in history.

Shimla, May 25 (IANS) To reduce the use of fertilizers, Himachal Pradesh is going to check samples of soil under the Soil Health Programme, an official said here Saturday.

New Delhi, May 25 (IANS) The BJP Saturday announced that former Himachal Pradesh minister Jairam Thakur would be its candidate for the June 23 bypoll to the Mandi parliamentary seat.

New Delhi, May 25 (IANS) Three of the capital's tony eateries are among a list of 101 Best Restaurants in Asia 2013.

Chennai, May 25 (IANS) India Cements may not be majorly impacted if its Indian Premier League (IPL) team, Chennai Super Kings' licence is revoked in the wake of the spot fixing scandal, industry analysts say.

London, May 25 (IANS) The old saying that you can't teach an old dog new tricks may not hold true for everyone. As more and more research has suggested, we never lose the ability to learn like a child.

United Nations, May 25 (IANS) UN will honour over 100 UN peackeepers, including five Indians, who were killed.

New Delhi, May 25 (IANS) Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi will Monday visit Maharashtra for a day to interact with farmers, a party statement said Saturday.

Agartala, May 25 (IANS) In a major policy change, Bangladesh will allow India ferry foodgrains for the mountainous northeastern states via its territory, a Tripura minister said here.

Los Angeles, May 25 (IANS) Brazilian model Gisele Bundchen believes "imperfections make us unique and beautiful", and so women must look real and raw in their photographs instead of being caked with make-up.

Mumbai, May 25 (IANS) Director Dharam Verma, who directed popular show "Lapataganj", is happy that the show is coming back with its second season. He says the new season promises a lot.

Mumbai, May 25 (IANS) The Indian cricket team will depart for England and Wales from here May 29 to participate in the ICC Champions Trophy to be held June 6-23.

New Delhi, May 25 (IANS) Designer duo Shantanu and Nikhil have created a signature line based on Disney characters. The line is for children aged between 6 and 14.