CA-NEWS Summary

U.S. believes Syria used chemical weapons but says facts needed

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. intelligence agencies believe Syria's government has likely used chemical weapons on a small scale, the White House said on Thursday, but added that President Barack Obama needed "credible and corroborated" facts before acting on that assessment. The surprise disclosure triggered immediate calls for U.S. action by members of Congress who advocate deeper American involvement in Syria's bitter civil war.

Rescuers comb Bangladesh rubble for second night, 260 dead

SAVAR, Bangladesh (Reuters) - Employees at a garment factory that collapsed in Bangladesh killing at least 260 people were told to work despite warnings it was unsafe, officials said on Thursday as an unknown number of the more than 3,000 workers remained trapped in the rubble. Survivors described a deafening bang and tremors before the eight-floor building, where most of the employees were women, crashed all around them. Dhaka District police chief Habibur Rahman said about 2,000 people had been rescued over two days.

Friends of Tunisian accused in Canada plot express shock

TUNIS (Reuters) - For the friends and family of Chiheb Esseghaier, the news that the Tunisian-born student had been arrested over an alleged al Qaeda-backed plot in Canada came as a major surprise given his mission to save lives as a medical researcher. His parents insisted he was innocent, saying he sent home money to help the disadvantaged. His friends in the Tunisian capital remembered him as an ordinary student, certainly no Islamist extremist, but perhaps somewhat naive and easily led.

Boston suspects discussed setting off bombs in New York: sources

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and his brother discussed setting off bombs in New York after attacking the Boston Marathon but their plan fell apart when they became embroiled in a shootout with police, law enforcement sources said. One source said the Tsarnaev brothers' original intent when they hijacked a car and its driver in Boston last Thursday night was to drive to New York with seven bombs to set them off.

Differences with centre-right delay Italy's Letta

ROME (Reuters) - Italy's prime minister-designate Enrico Letta started "encouraging" talks on Thursday for a new government to end two months of political deadlock, but said significant differences with the centre-right would take more time to iron out. Letta, the 46-year-old deputy head of the centre-left Democratic Party (PD), said he would use Friday as a "day to reflect" on his chances of piecing together a broad coalition to govern the euro zone's third-largest economy.

Body found in Providence River identified as missing student

BOSTON (Reuters) - A body found floating in the Providence River was that of a 22-year-old Brown University student who had been missing for more than a month, Rhode Island officials confirmed on Thursday. The body of Sunil Tripathi, who had been missing since March 16, had been found by the university's men's crew team late on Tuesday.

Iraq PM's coalition leads in eight of 12 provinces after vote

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's coalition has taken the lead in eight out of the 12 provinces that held provincial elections at the weekend, including the capital Baghdad, preliminary results showed on Thursday. A Maliki ally also won in Najaf, effectively giving him a lead in a ninth province.

South Korea summons Japan envoy over PM's remarks on history

SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea summoned Tokyo's ambassador in Seoul on Thursday to protest at Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's defense of visits by senior officials and lawmakers to a shrine seen by Japan's neighbors as a symbol of wartime aggression. China and South Korea chastised Japan after more than 160 lawmakers visited Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine this week. That followed a symbolic offering made by Abe to the shrine and a visit by Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso and two other ministers.

Syria says backing rebels risks new attacks on America

DAMASCUS (Reuters) - U.S. support for Syrian rebels may lead to more attacks on American soil like those of September 11, said a senior Syrian official who warned that Islamist fighters would spread "the fire of terrorism" around the world. Western powers are alarmed at al Qaeda militants joining a revolt that began two years ago with rallies for democracy and President Bashar al-Assad has seized on that unease; now, 10 days after the Boston Marathon bombings, Syria's deputy foreign minister told Reuters that U.S. aid to the rebels may backfire.

Putin: order and discipline not a sign of Stalinism

MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin rejected comparisons with Soviet dictator Josef Stalin on Thursday in his annual televised question-and-answer session with citizens, denying political persecution but saying Russia needed order and discipline. A liberal journalist referred to a host of legal sanctions applied to Putin's opponents since he was re-elected president to ask him whether there were elements of Stalinism in his exercise of power.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ca-news-summary-110531079.html

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