06.16.2012]blodic.us

Reuters International|blodic.us

Gyula Horn, the man who tore the Iron Curtain, dies at 80

BUDAPEST (Reuters) - Gyula Horn, who as Hungary's last communist foreign minister ripped a hole in the Iron Curtain in 1989, has died at the age of 80 after long illness, the government said on Wednesday.

Greek party leaders to meet Thursday over ERT impasse

ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece's ruling coalition leaders will meet again on Thursday to resolve an impasse over last week's closure of state broadcaster ERT after failing to reach agreement during talks on Wednesday, PASOK leader Evangelos Venizelos said.

Britain fails to get EU backing for Hezbollah blacklisting

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - A British drive to put Hezbollah's armed wing on the EU's terror list again ran into resistance on Wednesday from governments concerned it would fuel instability in the Middle East, diplomats said.

Kosovo's first envoy to Serbia quits after two days

PRISTINA (Reuters) - Independent Kosovo's first envoy to Serbia resigned on Wednesday, pre-empting his dismissal just two days into the job for exceeding his powers and making remarks likely to irritate Belgrade.

Italy's 5-Star expels rebel Senator who criticized leader

ROME (Reuters) - Italy's anti-establishment 5-Star Movement on Wednesday kicked out a lawmaker for criticizing its leader Beppe Grillo in the latest sign of growing internal strife in the party that took a quarter of votes at February's election.

Magnitude 5.7 quake hits central Chile, no damage reported

SANTIAGO (Reuters) - A magnitude 5,7 earthquake hit the central Chilean region of Valparaiso at 5:30 p.m. (1730 ET) on Wednesday, causing buildings to sway in the nearby capital of Santiago but no reports of damage.

Obama challenges Russia to agree to deeper nuclear weapon cuts

BERLIN (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama used a speech in Berlin on Wednesday to call on Russia to revive the push for a world without nuclear weapons, offering to cut deployed nuclear arsenals by a third, but Moscow immediately poured scorn on his proposal.

Russian official says statement on railway chief dismissal was hoax

MOSCOW (Reuters) - A statement announcing that Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev had dismissed Russian Railways chief Vladimir Yakunin was a hoax, Medvedev's spokeswoman Natalya Timakova said on Wednesday.

Georgia arrests torture suspects in new swipe at old government

TBILISI (Reuters) - Georgian police on Wednesday arrested nine serving and former police and military officers on suspicion of torture that the interior minister said was a "systemic problem" under the previous government of President Mikheil Saakashvili.

Brazil inflation erodes Rousseff's popularity: poll

BRASILIA (Reuters) - Growing discontent over rising prices in Brazil has dragged down President Dilma Rousseff's approval rating from record highs, pollsters said on Wednesday, adding that her popularity could deteriorate further if inflation is not tamed.