Yahoo! News India

By Nidal al-Mughrabi GAZA (Reuters) - Palestinian fans and big business are rallying behind a 22-year-old singer from the Gaza Strip in a final push to vote him the next "Arab Idol" in a TV talent contest choosing a winner in Beirut on Saturday. Mohammed Assaf is the first Palestinian to qualify for "Arab Idol", the Middle East's version of "American Idol", in which contestants perform for judges and voting viewers. ...

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - A Swedish court on Thursday sentenced a man of Rwandan origin to life imprisonment for his role in the 1994 genocide in the African county, the first such case in the Nordic state. Stanislas Mbanenande, 54, an ethnic Hutu from Rwanda who is now a Swedish citizen, was convicted of taking part in several massacres in Kibuye in western Rwanda, the court said in a statement. He had denied the charges. He was also convicted of playing a leading role at a lower level and participating in murder and kidnapping. ...

By Abdi Sheikh MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Somalia's Islamist al Shabaab rebel group threatened to keep attacking "disbelievers" without respite, a day after launching a deadly assault against the United Nations in the capital Mogadishu. Security was tight on Thursday as Somali army pick-up trucks mounted with heavy machine guns blocked the main road linking the city centre with the fortified airport and nearby U.N. base that was targeted. A water canon truck blasted away bloodstains on the street. ...

BEIRUT (Reuters) - President Michel Suleiman has called on the Lebanese Shi'ite Muslim Hezbollah movement to pull its guerrillas out of Syria, saying any further involvement in its neighbour's civil war would fuel instability in Lebanon. Hezbollah militants spearheaded the recapture of the strategic border town of Qusair two weeks ago by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, which now appear to be preparing for an offensive in the northern city of Aleppo. ...

By Jonathan Cable LONDON (Reuters) - Factory output in China, the world's second largest economy, weakened to a nine-month low in June, combining with a continued recession in the euro zone to threaten a global recovery led by the United States. A day after the Federal Reserve suggested the U.S. economy was firmly on a recovery path - enough so to withdraw some monetary stimulus - data showed China's economy was stuttering. Faltering demand pushed the flash China HSBC Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) down to 48.3 in June from 49. ...

By Samia Nakhoul and Patrick Markey BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq is being buffeted by both sides in the civil war raging across its border in Syria and Baghdad's official policy of neutrality is at risk as the conflict spirals into a region-wide proxy war, its foreign minister said. After two years of fighting that has killed more than 93,000 people, Syria's turmoil is dragging its neighbours into a deadly confrontation between Shi'ite Iran supporting President Bashar al-Assad and Sunni Arab Gulf nations backing Syrian rebels. ...

MUMBAI (Reuters) - The BSE Sensex fell more than 2 percent on Thursday, the biggest daily percentage fall in 21 months, as blue chips such as Reliance Industries slumped after the U.S. Federal Reserve signalled a tapering of its monetary stimulus, stoking fears of portfolio outflows. Reliance Industries Ltd provisionally fell 3.8 percent, while ITC Ltd ended 1.9 percent lower. The BSE Sensex provisionally fell 2.8 percent, while the 50-share Nifty ended down 2.86 percent, marking their biggest single-day percentage fall since September 22, 2011. ...

PARIS (Reuters) - France is not ready to reduce its nuclear arsenal for now, Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on Thursday, a day after U.S. President Barack Obama offered to cut deployed weapons as part of a global push to lower stockpiles. Speaking in Berlin, Obama urged Russia to help build on the "New START" treaty that requires both countries to cut stockpiles of deployed nuclear weapons to 1,550 each by 2018. "Barack Obama is proposing to Russia that together they reduce. ...

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Indian gold futures extended declines on Thursday afternoon by more than 4 percent to hit their lowest level in more than two weeks but in the domestic market a seasonally slack demand period outweighed the fall in price. Silver fell more than 5 percent. The actively traded gold for August delivery on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) was 3.79 percent lower at 26,950 rupees per 10 grams, after hitting a low of 26,890 rupees, a level last seen on June 3. "I have not been receiving calls from traders. Demand is still lukewarm compared with what we saw in April... ...

CARDIFF (Reuters) - India won the toss and asked Sri Lanka to bat in their Champions Trophy semi-final in Cardiff on Thursday. India named an unchanged side while Sri Lanka made two changes. All-rounder Jeevan Mendis replaced middle-order batsman Dinesh Chandimal, who has a groin injury, and pace bowler Thisara Perera was selected ahead of Shaminda Eranga. The winners will play England at Edgbaston in Birmingham on Sunday. ...

By Natalie Huet PARIS (Reuters) - France's data protection watchdog ordered Google on Thursday to change its privacy policy or face fines, leading a Europe-wide push to get the Internet giant to clarify its intentions and methods for collecting user data. France's regulator, the CNIL, said Google's privacy policy violated French laws and gave the U.S. company three months to make changes or risk a fine of up to 150,000 euros and a second of 300,000 euros if it still failed to act. ...

MUMBAI (Reuters) - India, the world's biggest buyer of gold, will levy 0.01 percent commodities transaction tax on futures contracts of non-agricultural commodities like precious, base metals, oil and gas, from July 1, the finance ministry said in a statement. The tax was proposed in the budget in February. India has 21 commodity bourses, including six operating at the national level. Foreigners are still not allowed to trade in futures, but can buy stakes in commodity exchanges. (Reporting by Siddesh Mayenkar; Editing by Prateek Chatterjee)

By Piya Sinha-Roy and Steve Gorman LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - James Gandolfini, the burly actor best known for his Emmy-winning portrayal of a conflicted New Jersey mob boss in the groundbreaking TV series "The Sopranos," died on Wednesday vacationing in Italy. He was 51. Gandolfini, whose performance as Tony Soprano made him a household name and ushered in a new era of American television drama, had been scheduled to attend the closing of the Taormina Film Festival in Sicily on Saturday. ...

New Delhi, June 20 (IANS) Come rain or sunshine, keep your skin flawless by figuring out what your skin needs and following your skin care regime religiously. From easily available over-the-counter products to kitchen beauty secrets, use them as per the demands of your skin.

Brasilia, June 20 (IANS) Brazil deployed members of an elite security force in cities hosting international football matches, in the wake of massive anti-government protests that threaten to disrupt the FIFA Confedrations Cup.

Ankara, June 20 (IANS) Turkish football club Fenerbahce will submit its defence on match-fixing charges at the House of European Football in Nyo Thursday.

New Delhi, June 20 (IANS) As the Indian rupee slumps to new lows, the country's middle class has been forced to cut back on eating out, buying branded products or new cars, studying abroad etc. as their monthly expenditure has risen by 20 percent, a study by Assocham revealed Thursday.

Mumbai, June 20 (IANS) A benchmark index of Indian equities markets closed Thursday's trade provisionally down more than 500 points as the Indian rupee slumped to another record low coupled with negative global cues following the US Federal Reserve signalling an end to its bond-buying programme.

Mumbai, June 20 (IANS) Bollywood actress Leena Jumani has just entered "Amita Ka Amit" and says her character will be responsible for creating misunderstanding between the protagonists of the show.

Chandigarh, June 20 (IANS) A girl volleyball player, who became the victim of an acid attack in Haryana's Rohtak town last year, will be given Rs.20 lakh by the state government for her plastic surgery, a state minister said Thursday.

Mumbai, June 20 (IANS) Navjot Singh Siddhu, who has joined comedian Kapil Sharma's maiden production venture "Comedy Nights With Kapil" as a facilitator, says very few people laugh despite the fact that laughter is a stress-buster.

Mumbai, June 20 (IANS) Essar Steel Thursday said it has raised $1 billion overseas loan through External Commercial Borrowings (ECB) with a view to de-risk its balance sheet from currency fluctuations.

Mumbai, June 20 (IANS) Actor-producer John Abraham has revealed that his architect brother Alan, who resides in France, was once offered a French film, but he turned it down.

Mumbai, June 20 (IANS) Controversial model-turned-actress Poonam Pandey, known for her outrageous photographs and statements, clarifies that she isn't cut out just for bold roles. She wants to do much more.

London, June 20 (IANS) China's Li Na advanced to the quarter-finals of the Eastbourne International tennis tournament as her French opponent Marion Bartoli pulled out due to a viral infection.

Mumbai, June 20 (IANS) A benchmark index of Indian equities markets plunged over 500 points in late afternoon trade Thursday as the Indian rupee slumped to another record low coupled with negative global cues following the US Federal Reserve signalling an end to its bond-buying programme.