Morning Headlines for Wednesday, March 25, 2015
Washington Post
“Obama: No ‘meaningful framework’ in place for Palestinian state”
“President Obama on Tuesday said that the possibility of peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians seems ‘very dim’ in the wake of comments Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made before his reelection last week.”
NPR
“Russia loses bid to deny benefits to spouses of gay U.N. staff”
“The United Nations has approved a plan to give family benefits to the spouses of same-sex employees if they are legally married. Russia had led an effort to derail the plan, which was announced by U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in July. But the U.N. General Assembly budget committee voted 80–43 against Russia’s proposal.”
Al Jazeera America
“Hezbollah prepares major offensive against ISIL”
“The focal point of the coming offensive will be Qalamoun, an area of mixed Christian and Sunni villages and towns set amid towering limestone mountains to the north of Damascus, along the Lebanese border. Hezbollah fighters are expecting a tough fight in mountainous terrain where units of Jabhat al-Nusra — Syria’s Al-Qaeda franchise — and the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant have survived the winter in caves, isolated farmsteads and positions fortified using bulldozers stolen from nearby Lebanese villages.”
AFP
“U.S. lifts sanctions on Cuba-linked shippers, traders”
“The United States on Tuesday removed sanctions on nearly five dozen shipping companies, trading firms and individuals that had been blacklisted for links to Cuba.”
Associated Press
“AP: Bill would bar incentives for those who don’t pay up”
“A New Jersey lawmaker plans to introduce a bill that would ban people or companies from getting state incentives if they are behind on payments to the state government. State Sen. Nicholas Scutari’s office outlined the proposal to The Associated Press. It comes days after AP reports detailed how Roizman Development Inc. was a key player in a partnership approved for $13.4 million in state tax credits to renovate homes in Camden, even though the same company is more than $6 million delinquent on payments on a state loan for another housing project.”
Reuters
“Exclusive: Saudi Arabia building up military near Yemen border — U.S. officials”
“Saudi Arabia is moving heavy military equipment including artillery to areas near its border with Yemen, U.S. officials said on Tuesday, raising the risk that the Middle East’s top oil power will be drawn into the worsening Yemeni conflict.”
Associated Press
“Homeland Security No. 2 accused of improper influence”
“The No. 2 official at the Homeland Security Department improperly intervened on behalf of foreign investors seeking U.S. visas in three cases involving prominent Democrats, including a company run by the youngest brother of likely Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton, the agency’s inspector general said Tuesday.”
New York Times
“3G Capital, co-owner of Heinz, is said to be in talks to buy Kraft Foods”
“Two of the best-known American food brands may soon unite in a deal that could reshape the industry — thanks in part to the efforts of a Brazilian investment firm with a penchant for deals. The investment firm 3G Capital — through the ketchup maker H. J. Heinz, which it owns with the billionaire Warren E. Buffett — is in talks to buy Kraft Foods, a person briefed on the matter said on Tuesday.”
New York Times
“Iraqi forces map plan against ISIS, with strategic use of militias”
“As a small force of Islamic State militants holds out in parts of Tikrit for a fourth week, Iraqi forces have been compelled to shift tactics, officials say: Rather than storming in to clear the city at any cost, the security forces are trying to seal off the area and begin preparing for even more challenging battles to the west and north.”
Reuters
“EU, Cuba to speed up talks, seek deal by end of 2015”
“The European Union and Cuba agreed to speed up the pace of talks on improving bilateral relations, hoping to reach the basics of a deal by the end of 2015, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said on Tuesday.”
Reuters
“Silicon Valley gender trial enters final stages”
“Jurors are being asked to decide whether Kleiner discriminated against Pao and failed to prevent discrimination against her based on gender, and whether it retaliated against her by not promoting her and subsequently firing her.”
Reuters
“China gives ‘priority list’ of wanted officials to U.S.”
“The Chinese government has provided a ‘priority’ list to the United States of Chinese officials suspected of corruption and are believed to have fled there, a top state-run newspaper said on Wednesday.”
Washington Post
“Veterans unemployment rate drops to lowest point since 2008”
“The unemployment rate among military veterans has dropped to its lowest point since 2008 last year, as the U.S. government hit a high for hiring former troops, according to federal data.”
Associated Press
“230 suspected jihadis prevented from leaving Australia”
“Counterterrorism squads have prevented 230 suspected jihadis from departing Australian airports for the Middle East this month, including at least three teenage boys, officials said Wednesday.”
New York Times
“Bipartisan deal on healthcare issues hits a snag among Senate Democrats”
“The deal is as politically remarkable as it is substantive: a long-term plan to finance health care for older Americans, pay doctors who accept Medicare and extend popular health care programs for children and the poor. It was cobbled together by none other than House Speaker John A. Boehner and Representative Nancy Pelosi, the leader of House Democrats, who rarely agree on anything, with the apparent blessing of a majority of their respective members.”
Reuters
“Islamic State releases Bangladeshi hostages in Libya oilfield attack”
“Two Bangladeshi citizens, among a group of foreign workers taken hostage by the Islamic State militant group in an attack on a Libyan oilfield, have been released after more than two weeks, the foreign ministry said on Wednesday.”
Reuters
“Top U.S. CEOs reaped billions from stock gains in recent years, Reuters analysis shows”
“CEOs at large U.S. companies collectively realized at least $6 billion more in compensation than initially estimated in annual disclosures in the five years after the financial crisis first hit, according to a Reuters analysis. The reason for the windfall: the soaring value of their stock awards.”
Reuters
“Loyalists of former Yemen ruler reject foreign intervention”
“Army officers loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, a powerful ally of Yemen’s Houthi militia, strongly reject any foreign intervention to end the country’s worsening conflict, a statement carried on a website affiliated to Saleh said.”
New York Times
“Ukraine president dismisses billionaire ally from governor’s role”
“In the latest move in a dispute that has threatened to fracture Ukraine’s government, President Petro O. Poroshenko early Wednesday dismissed the billionaire governor of Dnipropetrovsk, an important industrial region that has been a bulwark against the advances of pro-Russian separatists.”
AFP
“Search for bodies, clues in ‘inexplicable’ French Alps crash”
“Investigators combed through the pulverized wreckage of a German airliner on Wednesday and examined its badly damaged black box for clues as to what caused the mysterious crash that killed all 150 aboard.”
Associated Press
“Yemen’s president flees his house in Aden as rebels advance”
“Yemen’s embattled president fled his palace in Aden for an undisclosed location Wednesday as Shiite rebels offered cash bounty for his capture and arrested his defense minister.”
Washington Post
“Report: Virginia governor received special treatment from Homeland Security”
“Not long before he became governor of Virginia, Democrat Terry McAuliffe received special treatment on behalf of his electric-car company from a top official at the Department of Homeland Security, according to a new report from the department’s inspector general.”
AFP
“Russia wants to be ‘in step’ with Cuba on U.S. embargo”
“Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov visited Cuba on Tuesday, saying he was meeting officials there to develop a joint position on the U.S. embargo on the communist island.”
AFP
“EU slaps anti-dumping duties on China, Taiwan steel”
“The EU said Wednesday it has decided to impose anti-dumping duties for six months on flat-rolled stainless steel imports from China and Taiwan. The decision is the latest in a series of rows between Brussels and Beijing over alleged dumping of products ranging from wine to solar panels.”
AFP
“Mars has nitrogen, key to life: NASA”
“NASA’s Curiosity rover has found nitrogen on the surface of Mars, a significant discovery that adds to evidence the Red Planet could once have sustained life, the space agency said.”
