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Romanian hacker ‘Guccifer’ appeals for release
“Guccifer” – the Romanian hacker renowned for accessing the private emails of former US president George W. Bush and various key entertainment figures appealed his arrest on Friday, according to Reuters. Marcel Lazar Lehel, whose name roughly translates as “Small Fume” was detained in Bucharest on Wednesday after hacking the email accounts last February. Leading Romanian lawyer, Catalin Dancu, stated there was “close to no chance” of the request for release being granted.
Three killed in US Yemen drone strike
Three suspected militants have been killed in a drone strike in Yemen, east of the capital Sanaa. Local officials and tribal sources told Reuters that it was a US drone which killed the trio. A succession of explosions was heard by witnesses, after which a car with the charred remains of three bodies was found. Fifteen people were killed and a further five injured in December when a US drone struck a wedding party.
Argentina Govt lifts restrictions on buying foreign currency
Argentinian authorities on Friday lifted restrictions in place since 2011 that limited the purchase of foreign currency, AFP reported. The announcement came a day after the peso suffered its worst single-day dive since the 2002 financial crisis. Jorge Capitanich, President Cristina Kirchner’s cabinet chief, said the government has decided “to authorize the purchase of dollars for holding or savings.” At a rate of 8.01 pesos to the dollar, the peso “has reached a level acceptable to the objectives of economic policy convergence,” he said. The peso plunged by more than 11 percent against the dollar on Thursday.
UN nuclear inspectors’ visit to Gchine uranium mine in Iran imminent
UN nuclear watchdog inspectors will visit Iran’s Gchine uranium mine in the coming days, under a cooperation agreement signed late last year. The move was announced by Yukiya Amano, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Reuters reported. Amano did not give further details about the planned visit.
Three killed in US Yemen drone strike
Three suspected militants have been killed in a drone strike in Yemen, east of the capital Sanaa. Local officials and tribal sources told Reuters that it was a US drone which killed the trio. A succession of explosions was heard by witnesses, after which a car with the charred remains of three bodies was found. Fifteen people were killed and a further five injured in December when a US drone struck a wedding party.
3,000 Serbians protest anti-crisis laws
Some 3,000 workers have rallied against laws that Serbian government officials say are a key to economic reform, but which could lead to further job losses, AP said. Demonstrators marched in downtown Belgrade on Friday, demanding that new labor, bankruptcy and privatization laws be withdrawn. They also want the economy minister, Sasa Radulovic, to resign. Radulovic has insisted that the laws are necessary to restart Serbia’s economy. The reform bills are yet to be approved in Parliament.
2,000 Morsi supporters clash with security forces in Cairo
Fierce clashes broke out between about 2,000 supporters of deposed Islamist President Mohamed Morsi and Egyptian security forces in Cairo on Friday, Reuters reported. They happened hours after a suicide bomber attacked a major police compound in the capital. The fighting took place on the road that leads to the Pyramids of Giza. Some Islamists burned tires and hurled petrol bombs at security forces, who responded by firing tear gas.
Child dead in apartment explosion in Nice, France
An explosion in an apartment building on Friday morning in Nice, in the south of France, has killed a four-year child and injured four others – two of them were hospitalized. The multi-story building was seriously damaged, local media say. The blast ripped through two apartments, and parts of the roof and wall crumbled. The cause of the explosion was not immediately clear.
Syria delegation to leave Geneva if no ‘serious sessions’ before Saturday
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said on Friday that if no serious work sessions were held by Saturday, the government delegation would leave, Reuters reported. “If no serious work sessions are held by [Saturday], the official Syrian delegation will leave Geneva due to the other side’s lack of seriousness or preparedness,”state television quoted Muallem as telling UN mediator Lakhdar Brahimi. Brahimi and a Syrian government delegation reportedly met on Friday at the UN in Geneva. The mediator is due to meet the Syrian opposition delegation later on Friday.
More than 65,000 flee Iraqi fighting in week – UN
More than 65,000 people have fled fighting in the Iraqi cities of Fallujah and Ramadi during the past week, the UN refugee agency UNHCR said on Friday. More than 140,000 have been made homeless since fighting broke out at the end of last year, Reuters quoted UNHCR spokesman Adrian Edwards as saying.
UK can renegotiate ties with the EU to avoid exit – Cameron
British Prime Minister David Cameron said Friday he was confident he could renegotiate his country’s relations with the EU to allow it to remain in the bloc. “I’m confident that we’ll have a successful renegotiation and a successful referendum,” Reuters quoted him as saying at the World Economic Forum in Davos. He referred to his plan to reshape his country’s EU ties before offering Britons an in/out referendum if he is re-elected next year.
No talks between Syrian govt, opposition due to transitional body demands
Face-to-face talks between the Syrian government and the opposition will not take place on Friday, the UN said. It also confirmed that the Syrian mediator, Lakhdar Brahimi, will meet Syrian government and opposition delegations separately on Friday, Reuters reported. The opposition delegates earlier said they would not meet with the delegation led by Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem until it endorses the Geneva communique of June 30, 2012, calling for a transitional governing body to be established. Syria’s Information Minister, Omaran Zoabi, said Damascus will not accept opposition demands to form a transitional body. The Syrian delegation also said it is ready to discuss a ceasefire and the exchange of prisoners of war.
S. Sudan looters steal food to feed 220,000 for a month – UN
The UN World Food Program may have lost more than 3,700 tons of food in looting in South Sudan, enough to feed 220,000 people for a month, Reuters reported. WFP’s warehouses in Malakal had been almost entirely emptied, spokeswoman Elisabeth Byrs said on Friday in Geneva. The agency was working to recover lost stocks wherever possible and trying to protect remaining stocks.
Attack at German сourt leaves 1 killed and 1 wounded
One man has been killed and another is in a life-threatening condition after an attack in a courthouse in Frankfurt, German police said. The suspected attacker used a firearm and wielded a knife, dpa reported. He was arrested shortly afterward.
Philippine police detain 4, seize drugs worth $22mn
Philippine police have arrested four men and seized 1 billion pesos ($22 million) worth of methamphetamine. This was the second large drug bust in Manila in 10 days. The National Police anti-illegal drugs task force said the men were driving a van filled with five wooden crates containing 200kg of crystal methamphetamine when they were stopped on Friday. Last week, the National Bureau of Investigation arrested four Canadian men suspected of trafficking drugs from Mexico in separate raids. Agents recovered $2.25 million worth of cocaine, methamphetamine and MDMA, which is similar to Ecstasy.
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