A year after being literally wiped out, a Russian hockey team flourishes

Wooden hockey sticks smack into rubber pucks as the metal blades of skates slice through the ice. The sounds echo through an empty arena in the Czech capital Prague in late November as a visiting hockey team prepares for another game in the Kontinental Hockey League.But this is no ordinary squad. This is Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, a Russian team that was literally wiped out last year in an air tragedy that...

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Iraq Sunnis block trade routes in protest against PM Maliki

Tens of thousands of Sunni Muslims blocked Iraq's main trade route to neighboring Syria and Jordan in a fourth day of demonstrations on Wednesday against Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.The massive show of force marks an escalation in protests that erupted last week after troops detained the bodyguards of Sunni Finance Minister Rafaie Esawi, threatening to plunge Iraq deeper into political turmoil."The...

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Syrian moderates fear being edged out of uprising

Abdul Rahman, a quiet, even-tempered man, leads a collection of moderate Free Syrian Army battalions in Aleppo. He says groups like his are becoming harder to find as the 21-month uprising drags on and more groups lean either secular or Islamist extremist.At a time when opposition fighters live and die by their ability to get equipment, Mr. Rahman says it’s become more difficult for those in the middle...

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Berlusconi allies fire barbs at Monti, ending Christmas truce

 Italian politicians resumed their bickering on Wednesday, with supporters of former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi taking aim at his successor Mario Monti despite a Christmas call from the Pope for political peace.Just before midnight at the end of Christmas Day, Monti tweeted: "Together, we saved Italy from disaster. Now we have to renew politics. Complaining won't help anything. Rolling...

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Mental illness, poverty haunted Afghan policewoman who killed American

The Afghan policewoman suspected of killing a U.S. contractor at police headquarters in Kabul suffered from mental illness and was driven to suicidal despair by poverty, her children told Reuters on Wednesday.The woman was identified by authorities as Narges Rezaeimomenabad, a 40-year-old grandmother and mother of three who moved here from Iran 10 years ago and married an Afghan man.On Monday morning,...

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UPDATE 2-Soccer-Turkish championship results and standings

Dec 23 (Infostrada Sports) - Results and standings from the Turkish championship matches on SundaySunday, December 23Antalyaspor 2 Eskisehirspor 1Bursaspor 0 Genclerbirligi 0Gaziantepspor 2 Mersin Idmanyurdu 1Sivasspor 3 Elazigspor 1Trabzonspor 0 Galatasaray 0Saturday, December 22Fenerbahce 1 Karabukspor 3Kasimpasa 0 Buyuksehir Bld. Spor 2Friday, December 21Akhisar Belediyespor 0 Orduspor 0Besiktas...

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Hillsborough disaster tribute tops UK Christmas chart

A tribute song to the victims of the 1989 Hillsborough football stadium disaster has taken the number one spot on Britain's Christmas pop chart."He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother", a version of the ballad that was a worldwide hit for The Hollies, went to the top of the chart in its first week of release.Money raised by the single will go to the families of the 96 Liverpool soccer fans killed in Britain's...

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Soccer-Dutch striker Huntelaar extends Schalke contract to 2015

BERLIN, Dec 23 (Reuters) - Schalke 04's prolific Netherlands striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar has extended his contract by two years until 2015, the Bundesliga club said on Sunday."I've thought about this decision long and hard and I'm very grateful that the club officials allowed me the time to do so. But now I've made the choice I'm most comfortable with," Huntelaar, 29, said on the club website (www.schalke04.com)."I've...

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UPDATE 3-Soccer-Chelsea hit Villa for eight, leaders United held

* Chelsea beat Aston Villa 8-0 at Stamford Bridge* Manchester United held to 1-1 draw at Swansea (Adds quotes)LONDON, Dec 23 (Reuters) - Chelsea, playing with a swagger missing for much of the season, routed Aston Villa 8-0 on Sunday as Premier League leaders Manchester United wasted the chance to move six points clear after a 1-1 draw at Swansea City.Chelsea striker Fernando Torres began the goal...

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UPDATE 1-Soccer-Belgian championship results and standings

Dec 23 (Infostrada Sports) - Results and standings from the Belgian championship matches on SundaySunday, December 23Racing Genk 2 Anderlecht 4Standard Liege 1 Club Bruges 3Saturday, December 22Ghent 1 Charleroi 2Beerschot 0 Mechelen 2Cercle Bruges 2 Waasland-Beveren 2Mons-Bergen 1 Zulte Waregem 1OH Leuven 2 Lierse 2Friday, December 21Kortrijk 2 Lokeren 3Standings P W D L F A Pts1 Anderlecht 21 15...

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Thousands enjoy merry Christmas in Bethlehem

BETHLEHEM, West Bank (AP) — Thousands of Christians from the world over packed Manger Square in Bethlehem Monday to celebrate the birth of Jesus in the ancient West Bank town where he was born.For their Palestinian hosts, this holiday season was an especially joyous one, with the hardships of the Israeli occupation that so often clouded previous Christmas Eve celebrations eased by the United Nations'...

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Jack Klugman Dies at Age 90

Jack Klugman, one of television's most-loved actors, died today at the age of 90. He died peacefully at his home in Northridge, Calif., with his wife, Peggy, by his side, according to an announcement by his attorney.In a career that spanned more than 60 years, Klugman epitomized the "everyman," and was best known for two popular television series of the 1970s and early 1980s: "The Odd Couple" and...

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3 held without bond in fatal Ind. house explosion

 Residents whose Indianapolis homes were battered by a gas explosion and relatives of a couple who were killed packed a court hearing Monday for the three suspects charged with rigging the blast.The crowd watched in grim silence as a Marion County judge entered not guilty pleas for Monserrate Shirley, her boyfriend Mark Leonard, and his brother, Bob Leonard. They are charged with murder, arson...

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Holiday music stops at Irving Berlin's NY door

A caroling group that for 35 years has performed the Irving Berlin classic "White Christmas" on Christmas Eve outside the New York City home where he lived has cancelled the tradition.A group spokesman says the plans were abruptly cancelled last week for lack of space at the Manhattan home, which now serves as the Luxembourg consulate.The tradition started in the late 1970s with one cabaret singer...

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Ore. rescuers find lost snowshoers near Mount Hood

 Rescue teams have found 3 snowshoers who got lost on a weekend camping trip near Mount Hood.The trio was reported in good health, having made it through two nights under the leadership of a mountaineer.The three set out Saturday on snowshoes and called 911 on Sunday to report they were lost. Although the cellphone connection was sketchy, they said they had food and sleeping bags, said Detective...

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Investors shed shares of Blackberry maker

Shares of Blackberry maker Research in Motion slumped more than 16 percent Friday with future revenue coming into question and a declining number of subscribers.RIM's stock jumped initially Thursday when the Canadian company released better-than-expected third-quarter results and a stronger cash position.Shares reversed course during a conference call later, when executives said that the company won't...

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RIM’s biggest problem: It’s still scrambling to catch yesterday’s hottest mobile app

The moment I first realized that RIM (RIMM) was truly in enormous trouble was back in 2010 when I heard then co-CEO Jim Balsillie downplay the importance of apps. Yes, you read that correctly. Balsillie actually told attendees at a Web 2.0 summit in 2010 that the Internet itself was the most important “app” for mobile devices and contended that the “Web needs a platform that allows you to use your...

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Apple has achieved its highest ever smartphone share in U.S.

According to the latest data from Kantar Worldpanel ComTech, Apple’s (AAPL) smartphone market share in the United States recently reached an all time high. In the past 12 weeks, the company is said to have captured a 53.3% share of the United States smartphone market. Apple’s increased market share comes in the wake of the iPhone 5 launch, although things aren’t quite as good for the company overseas....

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Nokia, RIM settle old disputes in new patent pact

 Nokia Corp. and Canadian smartphone rival Research In Motion have agreed on a new patent licensing pact which will end all existing litigation between the two struggling companies, the Finnish firm said Friday.The agreement includes a "one-time payment and on-going payments, all from RIM to Nokia," Nokia said, but did not disclose "confidential" terms.Last month, Nokia sued the Blackberry maker...

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Fan-made tweak gives Apple a blueprint for better multitasking in iOS 7 [video]

In recent years, Android has continued to get better and better with new and useful features. At the same time, iOS has become rather stagnant and in many ways has fallen behind. iOS 6 did bring new features, but its subsequent updates also introduced a slew of issues. What’s most disappointing about iOS is that it still doesn’t allow users to quickly adjust basic things such as brightness, Wi-Fi,...

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Newtown shooting cranks up Canada's gun-control debate

Though the massacre in Newtown, Conn., last week has drawn sympathy from all over the world, it has a particular resonance in Canada.The shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School that left 26 victims dead, including 20 children, comes just a week after the 23rd anniversary of Canada's own "Montreal Massacre," which reshaped the country's gun laws. Moreover, it occurred even as Canadians recently renewed...

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Palestinians begin returning to Yarmouk refugee camp in Syria

• A daily summary of global reports on security issues.Refugees have started returning to the Yarmouk Palestinian refugee camp in Syria after fighting between rebels and government-allied forces sent them fleeing, but the status of the Palestinian refugees, along with hundreds of thousands of others displaced by the Syrian conflict, remains a top concern for observers outside the country.The Associated...

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Lessons from the Maya prophesy – whether the world 'ends' or not

Through a clearing in the jungle, visitors catch their first glimpse of the ancient Maya ruins of Yaxchilan in Mexico's southern Chiapas state. Stubborn vines have penetrated the walls of the Maya temple of the underworld. Bats hang in the cool vaulted ceiling and spiders scurry around the structure where ancient nobles once meditated and prayed to their gods.Here, like across the Maya civilization,...

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Syrian rebel infighting could take dangerous turn if Assad falls

In recent weeks, a number of opposition fighters in Aleppo have come to see the fall of the Assad government as only a matter of time. But bringing down the unpopular president may be easy in comparison to unifying an opposition that at times seems held together by little more than members' shared hatred of President Bashar al-Assad.Without him, its often unclear what will hold the disparate armed...

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Pressure mounts on Obama to change tactics on Iran

Arguing that further sanctions "are unlikely to stop Iran's nuclear pursuits," a group of Iran experts and senior former officials are calling on the White House to pursue realistic, "serious, sustained negotiations" with Tehran that they say are the best chance to prevent a nuclear-armed Iran.The letter to President Obama, from 24 signatories whose professional careers have often been marked by dealing...

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Ind. taxpayers to see $111 credit from surplus

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indiana taxpayers will receive a $111 credit on their state income tax returns next year as the state distributes part of its budget surplus.Gov. Mitch Daniels on Wednesday announced the credit that will be $222 for couples filing joint returns. The credit represents the automatic taxpayer refund plan that Daniels pushed through the state Legislature last year.That refund kicked...

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Lawmakers urged to resolve property tax inequities

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — County and real estate officials urged the Legislature on Wednesday to deal with a thorny problem of property tax inequities among New Mexico homeowners, also known as "tax lightning," when taxes skyrocket on some residential property.At issue are widely varying valuations of residential property for tax purposes and continuing fallout from a more than decade-old law intended...

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Exclusive: India's fiscal deficit could reach 5.5-5.6 percent of GDP in 2012/13 - source

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's fiscal deficit could reach 5.5-5.6 percent of GDP in the current fiscal year that ends in March, forcing the government to borrow up to 400 billion rupees ($7.2 billion) extra from the market, a senior government official told Reuters on ThursdayJust last month, subdued tax revenue and higher spending on subsidies forced the government to revise its fiscal deficit target...

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Italy's lower house approves Monti's budget plans

ROME (Reuters) - Italy's lower house of parliament on Thursday approved a package of budget measures including a sales tax hike and a cut in some payroll taxes, aimed at helping the government reach its deficit-cutting targets.Approval was expected after Prime Minister Mario Monti's government won three confidence votes on Wednesday that it had called to speed up passage of the budget.The measures...

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Consumer sentiment stalls ahead of Black Friday

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Consumer sentiment weakened in November as the holiday shopping period was getting underway amid growing uncertainty over federal tax and spending programs next year, a survey released on Wednesday showed.The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's final reading on consumer sentiment came in at 82.7, a touch up from 82.6 in October but down from a preliminary reading of 84.9...

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Obama vows to press ahead on fiscal cliff solution

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama says he'll press ahead with Congress to prevent across-the-board tax increases set to strike taxpayers Jan. 1 after House GOP leaders unexpectedly put off a vote on legislation calling for higher rates on million-dollar earners was abruptly scrapped Thursday evening.The measure "did not have sufficient support from our members to pass," House Speaker John Boehner,...

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