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By Andrew Osborn and Costas Pitas LONDON (Reuters) - Google Inc's tax affairs came under renewed scrutiny in Britain on Wednesday when the leader of the opposition Labour party accused the Internet company of wrongly going to "extraordinary lengths" to avoid paying tax. In comments designed to politically outflank Prime Minister David Cameron ahead of next month's G8 summit on what has become a high-profile issue, Ed Miliband, the Labour leader, said he was disappointed that Google paid so little tax. "I can't be the only person here who feels disappointed that such a great company as Google ...

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - An Istanbul court has sentenced a Turkish-Armenian author and blogger to more than a year in prison for insulting the Prophet Mohammad, local media reported on Wednesday, weeks after a similar case caused alarm among secularists. Sevan Nisanyan, who has authored several books and who runs a blog on what he describes as "history, religion and a (little) politics", posted a link to the offending blog on his Twitter account following the ruling. The accompanying message read: "Let's share the article that brought a sentence of 13. ...

By Ryan Vlastelica NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks, bonds and currencies took a wild ride on Wednesday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the U.S. central bank's massive bond-buying program would remain in place for now, even as the bank considers cutting back stimulus in coming months. Wall Street stocks jumped as much as 1 percent, before modestly paring gains after Bernanke, in testimony to Congress, said that if economic improvement continued, "We could in the next few meetings take a step down in our pace of purchases. ...

By Carey Gillam and Ian Simpson MOORE, Oklahoma (Reuters) - Rescue workers with sniffer dogs picked through the ruins of an Oklahoma town on Wednesday to ensure no survivors remained buried after a deadly tornado left thousands homeless and trying to salvage what was left of their belongings. "Yesterday I was numb. Today I cried a lot. Now I'm on the victory side of it," said Beth Vrooman, who hid in a shelter in her garage during Monday's storm in Moore, Oklahoma. When the winds died down, she realized a car was blocking her exit. ...

LONDON (Reuters) - Pearson's Penguin said on Wednesday it would pay $75 million in damages plus costs and fees as part of an agreement with the United States over alleged price-fixing in the e-book market. Pearson, which will take an extra provision on its accounts this year after setting aside $40 million in 2012, had already reached an agreement with the U.S. Justice Department in the e-book pricing case. The latest deal settles the case with individual states in the country. ...

By Belinda Goldsmith CANNES (Reuters) - An ultra-violent thriller set in the Bangkok underworld of brothels and fight clubs came under attack at the Cannes film festival on Wednesday for its blood letting which Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn defended as art. "Only God Forgives" by Refn, who won the best director award at Cannes two years ago, is the story of Julian, an American fugitive played by Canadian Ryan Gosling, who runs a boxing club in the Thai capital as a front for a drug business. ...

VIENNA (Reuters) - Srei Infrastructure Finance Ltd is poised to buy the domestic banking unit of nationalised Austrian lender Hypo Alpe Adria for 65.5 million euros, the newspaper Die Presse said. In a story released ahead of publication on Thursday, the paper said negotiations on the sale had wrapped up and that regulators had signalled no problems with the planned takeover. A spokesman for Hypo Alpe Adria declined to comment other than to say, "The relevant bodies of the bank have not taken any decision yet." The bank has said a sale is due by mid-2013. ...

CANNES (Reuters) - This year 20 films are in the main competition at the Cannes film festival, vying for the Palme d'Or for best picture that will be awarded on May 26. Here is the 2013 lineup with the average rating out of four by 10 international critics as published in trade magazine Screen: - HELI by Amat Escalante, Mexico Stars: Armando Espitia, Andrea Vergara. Synopsis: A 12-year-old girl falls in love with a police cadet, dragging her family into Mexico's brutal drug war. Average Critic Score: 1. ...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Boeing Co is 90 percent finished with retrofits of the battery system on its 787 Dreamliner and should finish the rest by next week, Ray Conner, president of the company's commercial airplane division, told an investor conference on Wednesday. Conner told the conference that he saw "great momentum" on the 787 program, after overheated batteries prompted a fleetwide grounding earlier this year. Production of the new airliner had reached seven airplanes a month and earlier problems with the supply chain had been resolved, Conner said. ...

By Cris Chinaka HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe signed a new constitution into law on Wednesday, replacing a 33-year-old document forged in the dying days of British colonial rule and paving the way for an election later this year. Approved overwhelmingly in a referendum in March, the constitution clips the powers of the president and imposes a two-term limit. However, it does not apply retroactively so the 89-year-old Mugabe technically could extend his three decades in office by another 10 years. ...

By Clara Denina LONDON (Reuters) - Gold was flat on Wednesday, giving up earlier gains after U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke warned of the risks of holding interest rates too low for too long, which boosted the dollar. Spot gold had briefly broken above $1,400 to a one-week high of $1,414.25 an ounce after Bernanke said the Fed needed to see further signs the economy was gaining traction before removing current measures. But it failed to hold onto those gains and was little changed on the day at $1,376. ...

By Pedro da Costa and Alister Bull WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve's monetary stimulus is helping the U.S. economy recover but the central bank needs to see further signs of traction before taking its foot off the gas, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Wednesday. In testimony that offered no sign that he is ready to retreat from the Fed's latest round of bond buying, Bernanke emphasized the high costs of unemployment and inflation that continues to run below the Fed's target. ...

By Eyanir Chinea CARACAS (Reuters) - A Venezuelan supermarket puts a stack of toilet paper on its shop floor, and desperate consumers snatch it up within five minutes. A woman's voice over the loudspeaker reminds shoppers each person can only buy four packages. Few seemed convinced by the government's promise just days earlier that the oil-rich South American nation would promptly import 50 million rolls. "It's a sad moment when a rich country like Venezuela reaches this situation," said Yenny Caballero, waiting at a check-out line at a store in an upscale part of the capital. ...

New Delhi, May 22 (IANS) Highlights of what Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi said Wednesday at the UPA-II's fourth anniversary:

Hull (England), May 22 (IANS) Dipika Pallikal reached the pre-quarterfinals at the Allam British Open Squash Championships after edging out Denmark's Line Hansen in the longest match of the tournament so far.

New Delhi, May 22 (IANS) Rajasthan Royals restricted Sunrisers Hyderabad to 132/7 in their Indian Premier League eliminator being played here at the Ferozeshah Kotla Wednesday. Shikhar Dhawan top scored with 33.

New Delhi, May 22 (IANS) Congress president Sonia Gandhi Wednesday appealed to the opposition parties, including the BJP, to cooperate with the UPA government in passing the food security and land acquisition bills in the interest of the people.

New Delhi, May 22 (IANS) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Wednesday spoke of the UPA having improved economic performance, rebutted opposition allegations on 2G spectrum and coal blocks allocations, and talked of the country's re-emergence through transformation.

New Delhi, May 22 (IANS) Detailing economic growth during the UPA regime, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Wednesday the slowdown last year was "temporary" and a longer term view would show that India has notched up an average "8 percent growth" in the past nine years.

Lucknow, May 22 (IANS) A man killed his three children Wednesday in Uttar Pradesh and committed suicide by throwing himself in front of a speeding bus, police said. He suspected his wife to be in an illicit relation with one of his relatives.

Panaji, May 22 (IANS) Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar will meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in June to press for special status for Goa and demand a special package for the people affected by the mining ban in the state, it was announced here Wednesday.

New Delhi, May 22 (IANS) On the ninth anniversary of the UPA government Wednesday, its two key figures -- Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi -- praised one another.

New Delhi, May 22 (IANS) The UPA is committed to transparency and allegations of impropriety in telecom spectrum and coal blocks allocations are being investigated and wrongdoers will be punished, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Wednesday.

New Delhi, May 22 (IANS) In an obvious reference to the urban centres of criticism, Congress president Sonia Gandhi quipped Wednesday that "Dilliwalas" don't seem to know the UPA's success story.

New Delhi, May 22 (IANS) Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi Wednesday described Defence Minister A.K. Antony as his "guru".

Bangalore, May 22 (IANS) Megha Muthukumar of Tamil Nadu and Aarja Chakraborty of West Bengal scripted upset wins en route to the girls singles quarter-finals of the Karle Infra ATF under-14 Asian junior ranking tennis tournament here Wednesday.