Israel hits Hamas buildings, shoots down Tel Aviv-bound rocket

GAZA/JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israeli aircraft bombed Hamas government buildings in Gaza, and the “Iron Dome” defense system shot down a Tel Aviv-bound rocket on Saturday as Israel geared up for a possible ground invasion.Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist group that runs the Gaza Strip, said Israeli missiles wrecked the office building of Prime Minister Ismail...

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Google Considering Wireless Network [REPORT]

Google is looking to cut out the middleman for its Android mobile devices and begin offering wireless service itself, according to a report.The search giant met with reps from Dish Network to partner on a wireless service “that would rival” wireless networks like AT&T and Verizon, according to The Wall Street Journal, which cited “people familiar with...

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Jon Stewart tells Bill O’Reilly to stop worrying about loss of “traditional America”

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – Jon Stewart has a message for Fox News host Bill O’Reilly — chill out about the loss of “traditional America.”“The Daily Show” funnyman skewered the right-leaning network on Thursday for treating the re-election of President Barack Obama – a victory aided by minority voters – as a cataclysm for the white men who were once in...

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Gaza hospitals stretched, need supplies to treat wounded: WHO

GENEVA (Reuters) – Gaza hospitals are overwhelmed with casualties from Israel‘s bombings and face critical shortages of drugs and medical supplies, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Saturday.The U.N. health agency appealed for $ 10 million from donors to meet the need for drugs and supplies over the next three months. Officials...

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Israel bombards Gaza Strip, shoots down rocket

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israel destroyed the headquarters of Hamas' prime minister and blasted a sprawling network of smuggling tunnels in the southern Gaza Strip on Saturday, broadening a blistering four-day-old offensive against the Islamic militant group even as diplomatic efforts to broker a cease-fire appeared to be gaining steam.In neighboring Egypt, President Mohammed Morsi hosted leaders...

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Israel moves on reservists after rockets target cities

GAZA/JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israeli ministers were on Friday asked to endorse the call-up of up to 75,000 reservists after Palestinian militants nearly hit Jerusalem with a rocket for the first time in decades and fired at Tel Aviv for a second day.The rocket attacks were a challenge to Israel‘s Gaza offensive and came just hours after Egypt‘s prime minister,...

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TV, movie features on new Wii U delayed until Dec.

NEW YORK (AP) — Some of the entertainment features on Nintendo’s new Wii U won’t be available when the game machine goes on sale Sunday.Nintendo didn’t give a reason for the delay in Friday’s news release. In a statement, the company said it wanted the service “to be the best possible experience for all consumers.” Nintendo said it was still working to...

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New Variety owner Jay Penske slashes one-quarter staff

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – Jay Penske, the new owner of Variety, laid off nearly a quarter of the company’s staff on Thursday.Between 20 and 25 employees from the struggling Hollywood trade’s circulation, database and conference departments were laid off. The editorial staff was not affected. Variety had about 120 employees before Thursday’s cuts. “Without...

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Relentless Afghan conflict leaves traumatized generation

KABUL (Reuters) – On a low bed in a quiet, all-female hospital ward, a depressed Afghan teenager huddles silently under blankets, her mother close by. In a nearby room are men suffering from schizophrenia, delusions of persecution and power, anxiety and panic disorders.Among them are some of the unseen victims of the war in Afghanistan: a generation of...

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Israelis, Palestinians lob threats via Twitter

Poaching and trafficking -- a menace for already endangered animals http://t.co/IO6vY...

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France urges Mali to step up talks with rebels

PARIS (AP) — France‘s president called Thursday for stepped-up talks between Mali’s government and any leaders from its breakaway north “who reject terrorism,” even as African nations geared up for a possible military operation against Islamic extremists there.President Francois Hollande‘s comments suggested a growing openness to dialogue with the extremists,...

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French mayor ends hunger strike after crisis aid

PARIS (Reuters) – A French mayor who went on hunger strike a week ago to demand emergency aid for his town ended his protest on Thursday and packed up the tent he had been sleeping in outside parliament after the government met his demands.“I regret that things came to that but it was necessary,” Stephane Gatignon, mayor of Sevran, a poor town on the outskirts...

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Walking, cycling may ease cancer-related fatigue: study

(Reuters) – People who have been treated for cancer often have lingering fatigue, but regular walking or cycling might help boost their energy, according to a UK study that looked at more than two thousand people.The long-lasting tiredness of cancer patients has been blamed both on the cancer itself, including cancer-related pain, and on the effects of...

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U.S. backs Israeli response to Gaza attacks

Israeli soldiers ride on top of an armored personnel carrier close to the Israel-Gaza border, in southern Israel. …The White House on Thursday threw its full support behind Israel's military response to a barrage of rockets fired by the Islamist Palestinian movement Hamas that rules the Gaza Strip. Deputy National Security Adviser for Strategic Communications Ben Rhodes said it would be "up to...

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NBC names new “Today” show chiefs

(Reuters) – Comcast‘s NBC has appointed two executives to take charge of the “Today” show, a day after the television network announced that longtime producer Jim Bell would be leaving to take a larger role in the sports division.Don Nash, a broadcast producer who has worked on NBC’s morning show for 23 years, will become the executive producer, reporting...

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FDA seeks more authority amid meningitis outbreak

WASHINGTON (AP) — The head of the Food and Drug Administration asked Congress Wednesday for more authority to police pharmacies like the one that triggered a deadly meningitis outbreak, even as lawmakers questioned why the agency didn’t do more with its existing powers.FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg called for new laws to clarify her agency’s authority...

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Clinton-Lewinsky 'spinners' resurface

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - It's a case of déjà vu in D.C.: some of the same high-profile, high-priced handlers who played supporting roles in the scandal over President Bill Clinton's affair with intern Monica Lewinsky have re-emerged in the sex scandal that has toppled one U.S. national security chief and threatens another. It is unclear what will be the roles of the expensive legal and crisis-management...

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General investigated for emails to Petraeus friend

PERTH, Australia (AP) — In a new twist to the Gen. David Petraeus sex scandal, the Pentagon said Tuesday that the top American commander in Afghanistan, Gen. John Allen, is under investigation for alleged “inappropriate communications” with a woman who is said to have received threatening emails from Paula Broadwell, the woman with whom Petraeus had an...

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FTC chief: Kids’ Internet privacy rules done by year’s end

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Regulators will likely finish a long-awaited update to rules protecting children’s online privacy by the end of the year, the head of the Federal Trade Commission said on Tuesday.The original rules were developed when most computers were large beige boxes sitting under office desks instead of smartphones slung into backpacks and...

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Man who accused Elmo puppeteer of teen sex recants

NEW YORK (AP) — A man who accused Elmo puppeteer Kevin Clash of having sex with him when he was a teenage boy has recanted his story.In a quick turnabout, the man on Tuesday described his sexual relationship with Clash as adult and consensual. Clash responded with a statement of his own, saying he is “relieved that this...

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Hospira says FDA blocks import of Symbiq infusion pump

(Reuters) – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has prohibited Hospira Inc from importing its Symbiq medication infusion pumps, which are manufactured in Costa Rica, into the United States, the company said Tuesday in a regulatory filing.Hospira in the filing did not say why the FDA imposed the restriction. A Hospira spokesperson could not be immediately...

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Who's who in the Petraeus scandal

What started out as a leisurely stroll through the Philadelphia Museum of Art on Nov. 11 with his girlfriend, quickly turned into quite a surreal experience for Max Galuppo, 20, of Bloomsbury, N.J. Galuppo, a Temple University student, found his doppelganger in a 16th century...

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Canada seen needing to spell out rules for natural gas projects

CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) – The fate of a handful of liquefied natural gas projects planned for Canada’s Pacific coast may depend on the Canadian government‘s willingness to spell out rules for foreign investment in the country’s energy sector, according to a study released on Thursday.Apache Corp, Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Petronas, BG Group Plc and others...

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U2′s Bono to urge U.S. politicians not to cut aid programs

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Irish rocker and anti-poverty campaigner Bono will appeal to Democrats and Republicans during a visit to Washington this week to spare U.S. development assistance programs from cuts as Congress tries to avert the looming “fiscal cliff” of tax hikes and spending reductions early next year.The U2 lead singer’s visit comes as the Obama...

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