CA-NEWS Summary

Rescuers searching for victims of Texas fertilizer plant blast

WEST, Texas (Reuters) - Rescue workers searched the wreckage of a fertilizer plant on Thursday for survivors of a fiery explosion that killed as many as 15 people, injured more than 160 and leveled houses in a small Texas city. Three to four volunteer firefighters were among the missing following the explosion on Wednesday night, said Sgt. William Patrick Swanton of the Waco, Texas, police department.

Obama arrives in Boston for bombing-victim memorial

BOSTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama landed in Boston on Thursday, on his way to a memorial service for victims of the Boston Marathon bombing amid a manhunt for a suspect seen on video taken before two blasts struck near the finish line on Monday. Obama will address the interfaith service and by extension the country following the blasts that killed three people and wounded 176 in the worst attack on U.S. soil since September 11, 2001. No arrests have yet been made in the investigation.

Pakistan's Musharraf flees court after judges order his arrest

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Former President Pervez Musharraf fled a courtroom on Thursday after judges ordered his arrest to answer allegations he committed treason in 2007, an ignominious retreat for a man who once dominated Pakistan and had hoped to revive his political fortunes. Pakistani television broadcast footage of Musharraf dashing from Islamabad High Court in a black SUV as several lawyers made half-hearted attempts to pursue his vehicle - a scene that would have been unthinkable when Musharraf was at the height of his powers.

Taliban in Qatar see no early peace talks with U.S.: sources

DOHA/KABUL (Reuters) - Taliban leaders living in Qatar have held no Afghanistan peace talks with U.S. officials in the Gulf state for more than a year and see no prospect of any soon, Taliban sources say. A team of envoys from the Islamist insurgent group flew to Qatar in early 2012 to open talks with the U.S. government, which has laid a greater emphasis on negotiations before a handover of security to Afghan forces in 2014.

Iran dismisses Israel threat at Ahmadinejad's last army parade

DUBAI (Reuters) - Israeli threats to attack Iran's nuclear sites are the harmless barking of a dog, Iran's military said on Thursday, marking the last Army Day ceremony of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's presidency with trademark acerbic rhetoric against the Jewish state. Ahmadinejad, who steps down at elections in June after eight years at the helm of the Islamic Republic's government, has used the podium at previous Army Day parades to lash out at the United States and its allies.

Scots vote, replacement debate challenge British nuclear deterrent

FASLANE, Scotland (Reuters) - Outside Her Majesty's Naval Base Clyde, campaigners who have fought for decades for Britain to abandon nuclear weapons believe that they are closer than ever to victory. In the 1980s, then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher brushed aside the protesters, saying that in the Cold War, atomic arms made the world a safer place.

Russia says U.S. must do more to address missile shield concerns

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian officials said on Thursday the United States had not done enough to address their concerns about an anti-missile shield it is deploying in Europe, indicating U.S. moves to scale down its plans will bring no quick breakthrough. Their remarks suggested missile defense will remain a bone of contention in relations, increasingly strained since Vladimir Putin returned to the Russian presidency last May.

IMF's Lagarde to be questioned in French misconduct case: lawyer

PARIS (Reuters) - International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde will be questioned by a French magistrate in May over an arbitration payment made to a wealthy supporter of former President Nicolas Sarkozy, her lawyer said on Thursday. Lagarde's lawyer in France, Yves Repiquet, confirmed a report by news website Mediapart that the former French finance minister was to be heard in the case involving billionaire businessman Bernard Tapie.

U.S. needs "clear signals" North Korea serious about talks: White House

ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE (Reuters) - The United States remains open to "authentic and credible" negotiations with North Korea, but the country would first need to show it is serious about abandoning its nuclear ambitions, a White House spokesman said on Thursday. "So far, we have not seen that," White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters aboard Air Force One. "The belligerent actions and words that we've seen emanating from the North Korean regime actually indicate the opposite."

Italian parliament fails to elect state president

ROME (Reuters) - Italy's parliament failed to elect a new state president in its first vote on Thursday, with deep splits in the center left torpedoing a quick victory for its official candidate Franco Marini. Marini, a former Senate speaker, won 521 votes, well below the required two-thirds majority of 672 of the 1,007 electors, comprising members of both houses of parliament and regional representatives.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ca-news-summary-001243053.html

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