Defiant Assad summons Syrians for "war to defend nation"

BEIRUT (Reuters) - A defiant President Bashar al-Assad called on Sunday for national mobilization in a "war to defend the nation", describing rebels fighting him as terrorists and agents of foreign powers with whom it was impossible to negotiate. Appearing in an opera house in central Damascus packed with cheering supporters, the Syrian leader delivered his first speech to an audience...

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Wong Kar Wai returns with new film "The Grandmaster"

BEIJING: Hong Kong director Wong Kar Wai's long-awaited martial arts film "The Grandmaster" was shown in public for the first time in Beijing on Sunday, after more than six years in production.The film spans several decades of Chinese history to tell the story of legendary martial artist Yip Man, who went on to train Bruce Lee, and features lengthy battles between rival kung fu masters.Wong,...

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Lot to be done to strengthen Indo-Pak bilateral ties: Salman Khurshid

AMRITSAR: India and Pakistan government took some bold initiatives to further strengthen the bilateral ties between the two which includes easing out the visa regime and opening of Integrated Check Post at Attari (India)-Wagha (Pakistan) border but still lot was to be done and hopefully it would be achieved in the near future with sincere and relentless efforts, said Union external affairs minister...

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FDA: New rules will make food safer

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Food and Drug Administration says its new guidelines would make the food Americans eat safer and help prevent the kinds of foodborne disease outbreaks that sicken or kill thousands of consumers each year.The rules, the most sweeping food safety guidelines in decades, would require farmers to take new precautions against contamination, to include making sure workers' hands are...

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Gun Show Near Newtown Goes on Despite Anger

A little more than 40 miles from Sandy Hook Elementary School, where last month 20 first graders and six staff members were massacred, gun dealers and collectors alike ignored calls to cancel a gun show, and gathered for business in Stamford, Conn.Four other gun shows with an hour of Newtown, Conn., recently cancelled their events in the wake of the shootings, when 20-year-old...

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Chavez swearing-in can be delayed: Venezuelan VP

CARACAS (Reuters) - President Hugo Chavez's formal swearing-in for a new six-year term scheduled for January 10 can be postponed if he is unable to attend due to his battle to recover from cancer surgery, Venezuela's vice president said on Friday. Nicolas Maduro's comments were the clearest indication yet that the Venezuelan government is preparing to delay the swearing-in while avoiding...

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Football: Transfer talks stall for AC Milan's Robinho

MILAN: AC Milan's bid to sell Robinho to Brazilian top flight side Santos floundered early on Saturday after the clubs failed to agree on a transfer fee, it was reported.Milan have slapped a 10m-euro price tag on the talented Brazilian while Santos offered only seven million, according to ANSA news agency.ANSA also reported that another Brazilian side that had shown an interest in purchasing...

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Centre waives off bill for ITBP deployment to guard Kasab

MUMBAI: Union home minister Sushilkumar Shinde today said the Centre had decided not to recover from Maharashtra government Rs 21 crore on account of deployment of Indo-Tibetan Border Police at Arthur Road Central Jail here to guard 26/11 terrorist Ajmal Amir Kasab. Kasab was lodged in Arthur Road jail, where the trial of 26/11 case also took place, for four years, before he was shifted to Pune's...

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Debt Limit Negotiating Tactic? No Negotiating

President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden walk away from the podium after Obama made a statement regarding the passage of the fiscal cliff bill in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2013. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)AnalysisNew for 2013: In the Washington, D.C. fiscal wars we’ve gone from everything must be on the table to politicians declaring...

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Eleven dead in Damascus gas station blast

AZAZ, Syria (Reuters) - At least 11 people were killed and 40 wounded when a car bomb exploded at a crowded petrol station in the Syrian capital Damascus on Thursday, opposition activists said. The station was packed with people queuing for fuel that has become increasingly scarce during the country's 21-month-long insurgency aimed at overthrowing President Bashar al-Assad. ...

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