World

OTTAWA,  (Reuters) – Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty apologized yesterday for breaking ethics rules when he lobbied on behalf of a constituent who wanted to set up a radio station, and said it was an “oversight” that would not happen again.

OTTAWA,  (Reuters) – The Bank of Canada has barked up the wrong maple tree with its new plastic banknotes, using a foreign Norway maple leaf as the emblem on the notes instead of the sugar maple that the country has on its national flag, an eagle-eyed Canadian botanist says.

(Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear four new cases, addressing matters as diverse as the reach of a law designed to combat chemical weapons, and whether lawyers could be sued for having once represented convicted swindler Allen Stanford.

ALGIERS,  (Reuters) – About 60 foreigners were still being held hostage or missing inside a gas plant today after Algerian forces stormed the desert complex to free hundreds of captives taken by Islamist militants, who threatened to attack other energy installations.

ALGIERS,  (Reuters) – Algerian forces stormed a desert gas complex to free hundreds of hostages but 30, including several Westerners, were killed in the assault along with at least 11 of their Islamist captors, an Algerian security source told Reuters.

WASHINGTON,  (Reuters) – Non-U.S. pension funds and mutual funds were spared the full brunt of new U.S.

BEIRUT,  (Reuters) – More than 100 people were shot, stabbed or possibly burned to death by government forces in the Syrian city of Homs, a monitoring group said yesterday, and fierce fighting raged across the country.

WASHINGTON,  (Reuters) – Non-U.S. pension funds and mutual funds were spared the full brunt of new U.S.

ALGIERS, (Reuters) – Algeria said several hostages were killed today when its forces stormed a remote desert gas plant occupied by Islamist militants in retaliation for French intervention in Mali, and local sources said six foreigners were among the dead.

TOKYO/SEATTLE,  (Reuters) – Airlines scrambled today to rearrange flights as Europe, Japan, Qatar and India joined the United States in grounding Boeing Co’s 787 Dreamliner passenger jets while battery-related problems are investigated.

ALGIERS/BAMAKO,  (Reuters) – Islamist fighters have opened an international front in Mali’s civil war by taking dozens of Western hostages at a gas plant in the Algerian desert just as French troops launched an offensive against rebels in neighbouring Mali.

LONDON, (Reuters) – A helicopter crashed into a crane on top of one of Europe’s tallest residential blocks yesterday, killing two people as it burst into flames and spiralled down into rush-hour traffic close to the Houses of Parliament in central London.

WASHINGTON,  (Reuters) – President Barack Obama proposed a new assault weapons ban and mandatory background checks for all gun buyers today as he tried to channel national outrage over the Newtown school massacre into the biggest U.S.

ALGIERS,  (Reuters) – Islamist militants attacked a gas field in Algeria today, claiming to have kidnapped up to 41 foreigners including seven Americans in a dawn raid in retaliation for France’s intervention in Mali, according to regional media reports.

LONDON, (Reuters) – A helicopter crashed into a crane on top of one of Europe’s tallest residential blocks in central London today, killing two people as it burst into flames and threw plumes of smoke into the foggy air.

BEIRUT,  (Reuters) – Two explosions tore through one of Syria’s biggest universities on the first day of student exams yesterday, killing 83 people and wounding dozens, a monitoring group said.

COLOMBO, (Reuters) – Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa appointed a close ally as chief justice yesterday, two days after he controversially sacked the country’s top judge for impeachment despite opposition from the Supreme Court.

ISLAMABAD, (Reuters) – Pakistan’s Supreme Court ordered the arrest of the prime minister yesterday on corruption allegations, ratcheting up pressure on a government that is also facing street protests led by a cleric who has a history of ties to the army.

BEIRUT,  (Reuters) – Two explosions tore through one of Syria’s biggest universities on the first day of student exams today, killing 83 people and wounding dozens, a monitoring group said.

NEW DELHI,  (Reuters) – Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said today there could be no “business as usual” with Pakistan after a clash last week along the line dividing the arch-rivals in Kashmir in which two Indian soldiers were killed and their bodies mutilated.