Yahoo! News India

Indian army soldiers rescue stranded villagers in a boat after floods triggered by heavy rains at Odhri village

Monsoon fury toll mounts in north India, rescue efforts on

Swollen mountain rivers fed by heavy rains destroyed homes and property in many areas in north India even as the monsoon down…

  • Wall St extends rise, investors see no change in Fed policy Reuters
    Wall St extends rise, investors see no change in Fed policy

    By Ryan Vlastelica NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks advanced for a second straight day on Tuesday as investors bet the Federal Reserve would temper statements which were interpreted to mean a sooner-than-expected winding down of stimulus efforts. Strong market breadth showed an increased appetite for equities, but trading volume was light, a sign that many market participants were taking a wait-and-see attitude. The Fed's two-day policy meeting started Tuesday, and traders are trying to guess its timeline for scaling back purchases of $85 billion per month of bonds. ...

  • Venus Williams pulls out of Wimbledon Reuters
    Venus Williams pulls out of Wimbledon

    LONDON (Reuters) - American Venus Williams has pulled out of this year's Wimbledon because of a back injury, the five-times singles champion said on Tuesday. The 33-year-old has not played since pulling out of the doubles at this year's French Open. "I will not be able to participate in Wimbledon," Williams wrote on her Facebook page. "I am extremely disappointed as I have always loved The Championships." Williams won her last Wimbledon title in 2008. Her sister Serena is the defending champion in this year's tournament which starts on Monday. ...

  • Dozens held in Turkey, silent protester goes viral Reuters
    Dozens held in Turkey, silent protester goes viral

    By Daren Butler and Parisa Hafezi ISTANBUL/ANKARA (Reuters) - A lone, silent vigil by a man in Istanbul inspired copycat protests on Tuesday, as police detained dozens of people across Turkey in an operation linked to three weeks of often violent demonstrations against Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan. Overnight in Ankara, riot police used teargas and water cannon to disperse hundreds of people who had gathered in and around the government quarter of Kizilay. ...

  • Icahn seeks Dell share buyback, buys Southeastern stock Reuters
    Icahn seeks Dell share buyback, buys Southeastern stock

    REUTERS - Billionaire investor Carl Icahn on Tuesday laid out a new proposal for Dell Inc , calling on the No. 3 PC maker to buy back 1.1 billion shares and allowing the activist to become a larger stakeholder. Icahn said in an open letter to Dell shareholders that he and Southeastern Asset Management would still seek to stop founder Michael Dell's buyout offer for the company, and if successful, elect new directors to the board at a shareholder meeting scheduled for July 18. Those directors in turn would implement a $14 per share tender offer, he said in the letter. ...

  • NSA head, lawmakers jointly defend U.S. surveillance programs Reuters
    NSA head, lawmakers jointly defend U.S. surveillance programs

    By Patricia Zengerle and Tabassum Zakaria WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The head of the National Security Agency on Tuesday said U.S. surveillance programs had helped disrupt more than 50 possible attacks since September 11, 2001, as sympathetic members of Congress also defended the use of the top-secret spying operations. In the first hearing dedicated to the surveillance programs since former NSA contactor Edward Snowden revealed them earlier this month, members of the House of Representatives Intelligence Committee showed little will for significant reforms. Instead, both U.S. ...

  • Australia, Iran and S.Korea head for Brazil Reuters
    Australia, Iran and S.Korea head for Brazil

    By Patrick Johnston REUTERS - Australia and Iran booked their fourth World Cup finals appearances with nervous 1-0 victories in a dramatic finale to Asian qualifying on Tuesday. South Korea joined them and Japan in qualifying for the finals after sneaking through on goal difference and Uzbekistan and Jordan retained hope of making it five Asian sides in Brazil after taking the third spots in the groups to set up a playoff. The teams will meet over two legs in September with the winners taking on the fifth-placed side in South America in a similar playoff in November for a place at the finals. ...

  • Crystal, Goodman head back to school in 'Monsters University' Reuters

    By Zorianna Kit LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - One-eyed green monster Mike Wazowski and his giant blue, furry friend James P. "Sully" Sullivan go back in time as "scaring" students in "Monsters University," as Walt Disney Co.'s Pixar Animation Studios pins its hopes for a blockbuster on the coming-of-age story. "Monsters University," a prequel to 2001 animated film "Monsters, Inc.," will be released on Friday in U.S. theaters, and director Dan Scanlon told Reuters one of the main challenges was to keep the film fresh and surprising for audiences. ...

  • North Korea nuclear test still shrouded in mystery Reuters
    North Korea nuclear test still shrouded in mystery

    By Fredrik Dahl VIENNA (Reuters) - The outside world may never find out what type of fissile material North Korea used in its nuclear test four months ago, leaving a key question about the explosion unanswered, officials and experts said on Tuesday. The isolated northeast Asian state is believed to have tested plutonium bombs in two previous such blasts, in 2006 and 2009. Any switch to uranium would increase international alarm as it could enable Pyongyang to greatly expand its arsenal. ...

  • GE moves into 'Industrial Internet' service with Amazon Reuters

    REUTERS - General Electric Co joined forces with Amazon Web Services on Tuesday to make a wide range of data on products, including jet engines and gas turbines, available online so they can be analyzed. GE said Amazon Inc is the first online "cloud" service on which it will start creating an "Industrial Internet" to tap a market that analysts say could be worth hundreds of billions of dollars by the end of the decade. ...

  • Justin Bieber hits photographer in Los Angeles car scrape Reuters
    Justin Bieber hits photographer in Los Angeles car scrape

    LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Teen pop star Justin Bieber struck a photographer with his Ferrari sports car while driving away from a comedy club in Los Angeles on Monday night, but the accident was not considered a hit-and-run, police said. Video taken outside the Laugh Factory comedy club showed Bieber behind the wheel of his white Ferrari, surrounded by photographers as he was pulling away. Celebrity website TMZ said Bieber motioned the photographers to clear out of the way but apparently pinned one between his Ferrari and a parked car as he pulled out. He then drove away. ...

  • Vodafone and Liberty face battle for Kabel Deutschland Reuters
    Vodafone and Liberty face battle for Kabel Deutschland

    By Paul Sandle and Sophie Sassard LONDON (Reuters) - Vodafone faces a battle for Germany's largest cable company, Kabel Deutschland , although rival bidder Liberty Global of the United States has bigger regulatory and funding hurdles to overcome. Liberty Global, which owns Unity Media, Germany's second biggest cable operator, joined the race on Tuesday. It tabled an 85 euro a share offer, according to a person familiar with the matter, days after the British mobile company said it was in talks about a deal. ...

  • Analysis: Saudi role in Syria driven by fear of Shi'ite "full moon" Reuters

    By Angus McDowall RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia's former intelligence chief, Prince Muqrin, once told American diplomats the Middle East's so-called Shi'ite Crescent where the Muslim sect holds sway was "becoming a full moon" as Iranian influence spread. For the kingdom's Sunni ruling princes, that fear, revealed in a 2009 U.S. embassy cable released by WikiLeaks, now focuses on Syria. Iran-backed President Bashar al-Assad's forces are advancing with the aid of Lebanese Hezbollah Shi'ite fighters, while Riyadh supports the Sunni rebels fighting against him. ...

  • Russia's Putin torpedoes G8 efforts to push out Assad Reuters
    Russia's Putin torpedoes G8 efforts to push out Assad

    By Alexei Anishchuk and Andrew Osborn ENNISKILLEN, Northern Ireland (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin derailed Western efforts to remove Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad from power at the G8 summit on Tuesday and, hours after meeting U.S. President Barack Obama, said the Kremlin might sell more arms to Syria. In a final communique after two days of intense talks, global leaders called for peace talks to be held as soon as possible to resolve the Syrian civil war. But it did not even mention Assad's name. ...

  • Barca's Puyol to have further knee surgery Reuters
    Barca's Puyol to have further knee surgery

    MADRID (Reuters) - Barcelona defender Carles Puyol is to have surgery on his right knee to remove a cyst which will keep him sidelined for three to four weeks, the Spanish champions said in a statement on Tuesday. The 35-year-old Spain international, who will undergo the procedure on Wednesday, has suffered a string of injuries over the last year, including two operations on the same knee, a fractured cheekbone and a dislocated elbow. ...

  • U.S. court lets stand Ex-Im Bank loan for Air India Reuters
    U.S. court lets stand Ex-Im Bank loan for Air India

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Tuesday let stand a decision by the U.S. Export-Import Bank to finance the sale of 30 Boeing wide-body jets to Air India in a legal challenge brought by Delta Air Lines . "I am gratified by the court's recognition that these transactions should not be impeded by litigation," Fred Hochberg, chairman and president of Ex-Im Bank, said in a statement after the ruling. However, the court directed the government-run bank to better explain its rationale for the loans, which Delta claimed as a victory in its long-running spat with Ex-Im Bank. ...

  • US, Taliban to have direct peace talks IANS

    Washington, June 19 (IANS) The US has decided to hold direct peace talks with the Taliban, senior White House officials have announced. The first meet is due to take place in the coming days in Qatar's capital, where the Taliban have opened their first official overseas office, BBC reported.

  • I don't have a home: Will.i.am IANS

    Los Angeles, June 19 (IANS) Singer Will.i.am doesn't have a home despite purchasing properties for several close family members and paying off their mortgages.

  • Sex racket busted in Delhi, woman pimp arrested IANS

    New Delhi, June 18 (IANS) A sex racket was busted here after two Uzbek women who were held hostage for five months in a house and were repeatedly sexually abused by customers, escaped, police Tuesday said. A woman pimp has been arrested.

  • Modi meets Advani to get backing for new role IANS

    New Delhi, June 18 (IANS) Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi Tuesday met L.K. Advani to get the BJP patriarch's backing for his new role as head of the BJP's campaign committee, an elevation that has split the NDA.

  • G8 condemns use of chemical weapons in Syria IANS

    London, June 18 (IANS) G8 leaders Tuesday condemned any use of chemical weapons in Syria, and that they were deeply concerned by the growing threat from terrorism and extremism in the Middle East country.

  • Lucky to have this character in 'Issaq': Prateik Babbar IANS

    Mumbai, June 18 (IANS) Bollywood actor Prateik Babbar, who will be seen in "Issaq" soon, said that he is lucky to have landed his role in the film as it had everything in it.

  • Missing student found dead in Yamuna river IANS

    New Delhi, June 18 (IANS) A 21-year-old class 12 student, who had been missing for five days, was found dead in the Yamuna river here, police said Tuesday. Victim's family alleged murder while police contended it was suicide.

  • Pakistani leader among 29 killed in suicide bombing IANS

    Islamabad, June 18 (IANS) A member of the provincial assembly of Pakistan's northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was among 29 people killed in a suicide bombing Tuesday, media reports said. Over 50 people were injured.

  • Kochi to host World Economic Forum India Meet: Chandy IANS

    Thiruvananthapuram, June 18 (IANS) Kerala's business capital, Kochi will host the prestigious the World Economic Forum's India meet Nov 8-9, said Chief Minister Oommen Chandy Tuesday.

  • 163 people rescued from flooded areas in Uttarakhand, Himachal IANS

    New Delhi, June 18 (IANS) A total of 163 people were rescued Tuesday from flood-affected areas caused by torrential rains in Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, disaster management officials said.

  • Barasat gang-rape: Protests rock Kolkata, web after Mamata's village visit IANS

    Kolkata, June 18 (IANS) People protested on the streets of Kolkata, women government staff took out a march at Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's seat of power, while the web users poured scorn on her Tuesday, a day after she shouted back at demonstrators in a village while on a visit to the house of a gangrape-murder victim.

  • Modi discusses poll strategy with BJP leaders IANS

    New Delhi, June 18 (IANS) After being made head of BJP's poll campaign panel, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi discussed with senior leaders the strategy for the five assembly elections scheduled this year-end as well as the 2014 Lok Sabha battle, party sources said Tuesday.

  • Bengal election panel working half-heartedly: BJP IANS

    Kolkata, June 18 (IANS) The BJP Tuesday accused the West Bengal State Election Commission of playing its role "half-heartedly" in the upcoming panchayat elections, and demanded that the commission call for an all-party meeting within two days to announce the roadmap for the polls.

  • US, Taliban to meet in Doha IANS

    Washington, June 18 (IANS) The US will meet the Taliban in Qatari capital Doha for talks on the peace process in Afghanistan, US officials said Tuesday.

  • 'Namaste', Jackie Chan gives back love to Indian fans IANS

    New Delhi, June 18 (IANS) Indian movie buffs have loved his action avatar for years, but Hollywood actor Jackie Chan, here for the inauguration of the China Film Festival Tuesday, showed his jolly side much to the delight of the star-struck audience. He says he is growing old, but it's the audience's love that keeps him going.