France Back Into Recession

Official figures show France has entered its second recession in four years after the economy shrank by 0.2% in the first quarter of the year.

Its economy shrank by the same amount in the last quarter of 2012. A recession is defined as two consecutive quarters of negative growth.

France has record unemployment and low business and consumer confidence.

German figures, also released, showed its economy, the eurozone's strongest, grew by just 0.1% in the first quarter.

France entered its worst recession since World War II in 2009. Although it was thought to have been in recession in 2012, these figures have now been revised to show only one quarter of negative growth.

The news comes on the first anniversary of Francois Hollande being sworn in as president.
Weakness
Earlier this month, the European Commission warned that France would enter recession this year and said the eurozone's economy would shrink by 0.4%.

The European Central Bank cut interest rates at its last meeting to a record low of 0.5% in an attempt to stimulate growth.

In France, the rate of unemployment is running at 10.6% and is forecast to rise further next year.

Its deficit is also expected to rise sharply, the commission says, to 3.9% of GDP - well above the EU deficit target of 3%.

But French unemployment is below the eurozone average, which was 11.4% in 2012 and is expected to hit an average of 12.2% this year. In both Greece and Spain, it is expected to peak at 27%.

France this week passed a range of measures aimed at stopping the rise in unemployment by reforming the country's labour laws.

These include measures to make it easier for workers to change jobs and for companies to fire employees.

The French economy has performed better than other eurozone members, including Spain and Italy, but it has not moved as quickly to reform its economy.

One of the new bill's main measures is to allow companies to cut workers' salaries or hours temporarily during times of sluggish economic performance, something that is common in Germany.

The figure for German growth, the largest and still the strongest economy in the 17-strong eurozone, was far weaker than expected. Economists had expected to see growth of 0.3% in the first quarter.

Annual figures from the Statistics Office also show the German economy has shrunk by 1.4% when compared with a year ago.

But in a statement it said this was partly due to severe winter weather: "The German economy is only slowly picking up steam. The extreme winter weather played a role in this weak growth."

Source: BBC News

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Syria Denies Role In Turkey Blasts

Syria has denied being responsible for two car bombs which killed 46 people in a Turkish border town.

Information Minister Omran al-Zoubi told a news conference on Sunday his country "did not commit and would never commit such an act because our values would not allow that".

Turkish police say that nine people have been arrested in connection with Saturday's attacks in Reyhanli.

Ankara has said that it suspects the involvement of Syrian intelligence.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey would not be dragged into a "bloody quagmire".

He called on Turks to be "extremely careful, extremely vigilant... in the face of provocations".

"We will not be trapped. The aim of these attacks is to pit Turks against each other and create chaos. So I call on all my citizens to keep calm."

The Turkish government said on Sunday that the number of people killed in the blasts had risen to 46 and that more than 50 others were still being treated in hospital.

All nine of those arrested in connection with the attacks were Turkish citizens, officials said.

"This incident was carried out by an organisation which is in close contact to pro-regime groups in Syria and I say this very clearly, with the Syrian Mukhabarat," Interior Minister Muammer Guler told Turkish TV.

Turkey, a Nato member, is a strong supporter of the opposition in Syria's civil war and a vocal critic of President Bashar al-Assad's government.

The US and Nato have condemned the bombings and expressed support for Turkey.

Hundreds of mourners have been attending the funerals of the victims in Reyhanli, which is home to many Syrian refugees.

Mr Zoubi said that "it is not anyone's right to hurl unfounded accusations".

"We were saddened by the martyrs' deaths" [on] Saturday in the town of Reyhanli," he said.

"It is [Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip] Erdogan who should be asked about this act. He and his party bear direct responsibility."

Mr Zoubi also launched what correspondents say was one of the harshest personal attacks on Turkey's prime minister by an Syrian official so far. He demanded that Mr Erdogan "step down as a killer and as a butcher".

It was a robust response from Damascus, throwing responsibility for the blasts firmly back on the Turkish authorities.

Mr Zoubi said it was the Turkish government that had facilitated the flow of arms, explosives, vehicles, fighters and money across the border into Syria.

He said that this had turned the border areas into centres for international terrorism and the Turkish leadership had to take political and moral responsibility for it.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has vowed to catch those behind the attack. On Sunday he said that he believed fighters loyal to Syrian President Assad were responsible.

The Syrian opposition coalition has added its voice to the Turkish accusations that Damascus was behind the bombings, saying it was a blatant attempt to drive a wedge between Turkey and the thousands of Syrian refugees who have been given shelter on the Turkish side of the border.

Mr Davutoglu said that the attacks "have nothing to do with the Syrian refugees in Turkey, it's got everything to do with the Syrian regime".

He said that it was "not a coincidence" that the bombings occurred as diplomatic efforts to solve the Syrian crisis were intensifying.

"There may be those who want to sabotage Turkey's peace, but we will not allow that," he said.

"No-one should attempt to test Turkey's power. Our security forces will take all necessary measures."

He said those behind Saturday's bombings were believed also to have been behind an attack on the Syrian coastal town of Banias a week ago, in which fighters backing President Assad in the civil war were reported to have killed at least 62 people.

Reyhanli is an entry point for refugees fleeing violence in Syria and local people attacked Syrian refugees and cars with Syrian number plates after the attack, according to local media.

The Turkish government said the bombings were intended to pit Turks against Syrian refugees in Reyhanli, adding that refugees had no role in the attack.

Mr Erdogan's policy on Syria has always been to support the Syrian opposition but not become involved in the war, but the attacks now make it very difficult for him to carry on staying out of the conflict, our correspondent says.

He is scheduled to meet President Barack Obama in Washington on Thursday with the US currently considering its options over Syria.

There has been some speculation that the bomb attacks may strengthen the hand of those urging the creation of a no-fly zone and safe haven for the Syrian opposition inside Syrian territory.

Source: BBC News

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Ghanaian Held After Italy Pickaxe Rampage

An illegal immigrant has gone on the rampage with a pickaxe in the Italian city of Milan, killing a passer-by and wounding four others, police say.

A suspect has been arrested and named as Mada Kabobo, a 21-year-old Ghanaian.

A 40-year-old man was killed in the attack in a northern suburb of the city. Two of the four people injured are said to be in a critical state.

Correspondents the incident has revived a long-running debate over illegal immigrants in Italy.

Milan is located in Lombardy, where the Northern League party is calling for tougher policies on immigration.

The motive for Saturday morning's attack remains unclear.

Police say Mr Kabobo was in the country illegally, and had previously been arrested over a variety of alleged offences including theft and robbery.

Source: BBC News

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Kurdish PKK Rebels Begin Leaving Turkey

Kurdish rebel fighters have begun leaving south-eastern Turkey for their safe havens in Iraq under a ceasefire, Kurdish sources say.

"We know that they have started moving," Selahattin Demirtas, a pro-Kurdish politician involved in the peace process, told AFP news agency.

The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) announced last month a phased withdrawal to start early in May.

More than 40,000 people have died in their 30-year fight against Turkey.

There was no immediate official confirmation of the move from Turkey but an unnamed security source told Reuters news agency: "We have observed movement among [PKK] group members, but have not been able to establish whether this is regrouping or preparation for a withdrawal."

The PKK is believed to have up to 2,000 fighters inside Turkey and their full withdrawal may take up to four months.

They are expected to cross the border on foot, heading for their bases in the Qandil Mountains of Iraq.

Abdullah Ocalan, the veteran PKK leader in prison in Turkey, ordered the withdrawal in March as part of peace negotiations with Ankara.

Gultan Kisinak, who co-chairs the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) along with Mr Demirtas, told the Associated Press news agency that a first group of fighters had started to move toward the border with northern Iraq.

A PKK spokesman, Bakhtiyar Dogan, told the Kurdish newspaper Hawlati that between 200 and 500 fighters would withdraw on Wednesday.

They would, he said, leave from the Semdinli and Sirnak areas of Turkey "on three fronts".

According to AFP, PKK fighters complained on the eve of the withdrawal that the Turkish state had increased its forces in the border area and was carrying out surveillance flights.

Such actions, they said, were "delaying the peace process" and paving the way for "provocations and clashes".

The Turkish army did not confirm any extra measures but said their "fight against any terrorism" continued.

Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc was quoted as saying by AP: "We are following the issue. It's the results that are important for us. We feel that we are close to getting results."

The PKK's acting leader, Murat Karayilan, warned in April that the fighters would strike back and the withdrawal would halt "immediately" if they were attacked.

"We have no doubt about the state but fear provocation from dark forces," Mr Demirtas said.

During a 1999 withdrawal, the Turkish military attacked the rebels, killing some 500.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly pledged the army will not attack any PKK fighters who withdrew.

On Tuesday, he said that "laying down weapons" should be the group's top priority in order for the peace process to succeed.

Source: BBC News

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Deaths As Ship Rams Genoa Tower

Seven people have died and two are missing after a container ship crashed into a control tower in the Italian port of Genoa, officials say.

The Jolly Nero smashed into the 50m (164ft) concrete and glass tower late on Tuesday, causing it to collapse.

Rescue workers have been searching in the rubble for survivors while divers are scouring the surrounding water.

The ship's captain is being investigated by prosecutors with a view to possible manslaughter charges.

Officials, though, have said that some sort of mechanical failure was most likely to blame for what happened.

The vessel has been impounded and its "black box" seized by investigators, according to Italy's Ansa news agency.

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Arrests Over $50m Belgium Airport Diamond Heist

Police in Belgium, Switzerland and France have arrested 31 people in connection with one of the world's largest robberies of diamonds.

Belgian prosecutors say they have recovered large sums of money and some of the diamonds that were taken in a raid at Brussels airport in February.

A gang cut through the airport's perimeter fence and broke into the cargo hold of a Swiss aeroplane as it waited for take off.

They took $50m (£32m) of diamonds.

The diamonds were "rough stones" being transported from Antwerp to Zurich.

Prosecutors described the thieves as "professionals".

They had dressed as police, wore masks and were well armed.

They forced their way through security barriers and drove towards the Helvetic Airways plane, forcing open the cargo hold to reach gems that had already been loaded.

They snatched 120 packages before escaping through the same hole in the fence.

Prosecutors said the whole operation took only about five minutes, no shots were fired and no-one was hurt.

One suspect was arrested in France and six in Switzerland on Tuesday, Belgian prosecutors said.

The other 24 were rounded up near Brussels early on Wednesday.

Source: BBC News

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French Left Rallies Against Hollande

Tens of thousands of protesters have rallied in the French capital, Paris, to express their dissatisfaction with President Francois Hollande ahead of the first anniversary of his election.

The left-wing demonstrators accuse the president of abandoning socialism with his austerity policies.

Recent opinion polls show Mr Hollande's approval rating among the public has fallen to about 25%.

This is the biggest slump for any French president in the past 50 years.

Many people are angered by the weak economy and soaring unemployment.

And correspondents say Mr Hollande's vision of a fairer society does not sit well with the recent scandal involving his former budget minister Jerome Cahuzac, who admitted lying about a savings account in Switzerland.

Separately, opponents of gay marriage held protests in several major cities calling for the president not to sign a law passed by parliament last month allowing same-sex couples to wed and adopt children.

Organisers of the anti-austerity demonstration estimated that about 180,000 people were in attendance, but police put the figure at just 30,000.

Left-wing former presidential candidate Jean-Luc Melanchon, who organised the protest, accused Mr Hollande of betraying his supporters.

"We don't want the financial world taking the power, we don't accept austerity measures which doom our people, like all people in Europe, to never-ending pain," he said.

In response, Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said: "There is no austerity, that's a propaganda invention," adding that reforms would "bear fruit little by little".

Source: BBC News

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Hungary PM Condemns Anti-Semitism

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has condemned anti-Semitism at the opening of a meeting of the World Jewish Congress (WJC) in Budapest.

He acknowledged anti-Semitism was on the rise in the country because of the economic crisis but said his government had a "zero-tolerance" towards it.

On Saturday the far-right Jobbik party held a protest against the Hungarian capital hosting the WJC meeting.

The party's leaders regularly issue anti-Semitic statements.

The WJC usually hosts its assembly in Jerusalem, but chose Hungary this year to highlight what it says is growing anti-Semitism in Europe.

Addressing the opening session, Mr Orban said: "Anti-Semitism is unacceptable and cannot be tolerated."

He added that his government had a "moral duty to declare zero tolerance on anti-Semitism".

However the WJC expressed its disappointment that Mr Orban had not specifically talked about Jobbik, the third-largest party in parliament.

"The prime minister did not confront the true nature of the problem - the threat posed by the anti-Semites in general and by the extreme-right Jobbik party in particular," it said in a statement.

The president of the World Jewish Congress, Ronald Lauder, said Jews were again wondering if they were safe in Hungary.

Saturday's rally by Jobbik was billed as a tribute to what organisers called the victims of Bolshevism and Zionism.

"The Israeli conquerors, these investors, should look for another country in the world for themselves because Hungary is not for sale," party chairman Gabor Vona told the crowd.

Jobbik MP Marton Gyongyosi said Hungary had "become subjugated to Zionism, it has become a target of colonisation while we, the indigenous people, can play only the role of extras".

Mr Orban had ordered police to ban the march, but a Budapest court overruled the ban.

Source: BBC News

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Powerful Blast Rocks Central Prague

A large explosion has damaged a building in the centre of the Czech capital Prague.

The area around the explosion in Divadelni St was sealed off by police. At least 35 people were injured by the blast, emergency services say, one of them seriously.

Prague's mayor told Czech radio three people may be trapped in the rubble.

Police say that the blast, which blew the windows out of nearby buildings, was most likely caused by a gas leak.

A strong smell of gas was reported before and after the blast by several people in the area, in Prague's Old Town.

The site of the explosion is close to the Vltava river, and near the country's National Theatre.

Neighbouring buildings were evacuated and a two-kilometre stretch of the embankment was cordoned off, Czech media say.

A police spokesman said that there had been about 15 people in the building, which included an office of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and an art gallery, Reuters news agency reports.

The building also housed a film school and the social sciences faculty of the city's Charles University.

"We heard a strong explosion and we felt the building tremble and the windows shake," eyewitness Jaroslav Faltus said.

Source: BBC News

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Greek MPs To Vote On Mass Job Cuts

The Greek parliament will vote on Sunday on proposals which would see 15,000 state employees lose their jobs by the end of next year.

The bill is part of continuing moves by the centre-right government to cut costs and ensure more bailout money from international creditors.

The law is a condition for Greece to receive the next tranche of loans worth 8.8bn euros (£7.4bn; $11.4bn).

Trade unions have called a protest in the streets outside parliament.

Although debate on the measure began on Sunday morning, a vote was not expected until midnight.

The new law would overturn what had been a constitutional guarantee for civil servants of a job for life.

The sector has been seen as notoriously bloated since it expanded in the 1970s and '80s as successive administrations employed their own people, our correspondent adds.

Some 2,000 civil servants will lose their jobs by the end of June, reports Kathimerini newspaper.

State workers who have broken rules will be targeted for dismissal, but many are expected to be replaced by younger employees in key sectors such as health.

So the law would not slim down the public sector, our correspondent says. That would be achieved by a parallel plan that would see 150,000 state jobs go by the end of 2015, by replacing only some of those who retire.

Adedy, the civil service trade confederation, and the private sector GSEE union called a demonstration outside parliament late on Sunday afternoon against "those politicians who are dismantling the public service and destroying the welfare state".

Critics say the law, which is part of a larger package of measures, will increase Greece's already high unemployment rate of 27%.

The conservative coalition, led by Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, has 167 seats in the 300-seat parliament so the measure is thought likely to pass.
However, there are reports of divisions within his government on some issues and there is speculation he could reshuffle his ministerial team soon.

Eurozone finance ministers are expected to decide on the next instalment of aid for debt-ridden Greece at a meeting on 16 May.

Since 2010, the European Union and the IMF have promised more than 200bn euros in lending for Greece, the first country to be hit by the eurozone crisis.

The government has imposed tough austerity measures in return for aid, including cuts in pay and pensions leading to numerous general strikes.

Source: BBC News

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New Italian Grand Coalition Government Sworn In

A new Italian government has been sworn in at the presidential Quirinal Palace in Rome.

Democratic Party Deputy Leader (PD), Enrico Letta, becomes prime minister at the head of a "grand coalition" including Silvio Berlusconi's People of Freedom party (PDL).

The swearing-in signals the end of two months of political deadlock.

Away from the ceremony, outside the PM's office, two police officers were injured in a shooting incident.

One was shot in the neck and is described as being in a serious condition. The second suffered a serious wound to the leg. A pregnant woman was also slightly hurt.

A man, named as Luigi Preiti, has been arrested.

Prosecutors said he had confessed to targeting politicians, angry that he had lost his job.

Rome Prosecutor Pierfilippo Laviani said he "wanted to shoot politicians, but given that he couldn't reach any, he shot the Carabinieri".

The Mayor of Rome Gianni Alemanno said: "It's not an act of terrorism but certainly the [political] climate of the past few months has not helped."

Since February's inconclusive poll there has been political stalemate in Italy, which is still plagued by economic woes after becoming one of the first eurozone victims of the global financial crisis of 2008.

The shooting happened about a kilometre (mile) away from the swearing-in ceremony, where, beginning with Mr Letta, the 21 new government ministers stepped forward one by one to receive the oath of office from President Giorgio Napolitano.

Correspondents say the "grand coalition" between Italy's current main right- and left-wing parties is unprecedented, and will probably prove an uneasy alliance.

Mr Berlusconi will not be a minister but had pushed for leading figures from his party to be given top posts.

Mr Alfano, the PDL's secretary and one of Mr Berlusconi's closest political allies, is deputy prime minister as well as interior minister in the new government.

Among the other key appointments are Bank of Italy director general Fabrizio Saccomanni to head the powerful economy ministry.

Source: BBC News

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Last Respects Paid To Lady Thatcher

The Queen has led mourners in St Paul's Cathedral at the funeral of Baroness Thatcher, Britain's longest serving prime minister of modern times.

More than 2,000 dignitaries from around the world paid their last respects at the biggest such occasion since the Queen Mother's funeral in 2002.

Lady Thatcher's coffin was carried through streets lined by mourners and members of the three armed forces.

PM David Cameron said it was a "fitting tribute" to a major figure.

Four thousand police officers are on duty in central London, which saw large crowds along the route of her funeral procession, which was conducted with full military honours. There were reports of some protests but not the large demonstrations some had predicted.

The congregation at St Paul's included Lady Thatcher's family and all surviving British prime ministers, Tony Blair, Gordon Brown and Sir John Major, the current cabinet and surviving members of Lady Thatcher's governments.

There were tears, and occasional laughter, as the Bishop of London, The Right Reverend Richard Chartres, paid tribute to Lady Thatcher's forthright character in a simple service, which, at her personal request, did not include any eulogies.

"After the storm of a life led in the heat of political controversy, there is a great calm," said The Right Reverend Chartres.

"The storm of conflicting opinions centres on the Mrs Thatcher who became a symbolic figure - even an ism.

"Today the remains of the real Margaret Hilda Thatcher are here at her funeral service.

"Lying here, she is one of us, subject to the common destiny of all human beings."

The day began with Lady Thatcher leaving Parliament for the last time as a hearse took her body from the crypt chapel of St Mary Undercroft in the Palace of Westminster to the start of the military procession at St Clement Danes in The Strand.

The union jack draped-coffin was topped with a large bunch of white flowers and a note reading: "Beloved mother, always in our hearts."

A gun carriage drawn by six black horses carried the coffin through the streets to St Paul's, where the funeral service began with readings from the King James Bible by Mr Cameron and Lady Thatcher's granddaughter Amanda, and hymns chosen by the former prime minister.

The service ended with a blessing from the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, before the coffin was borne out of the cathedral and returned to a hearse which will take it to the Royal Hospital Chelsea ahead of a private cremation at Mortlake Crematorium in south west London.

Lady Thatcher, who was Conservative Prime Minister from 1979 until 1990, died on 8 April, following a stroke, at the age of 87.

She was accorded a ceremonial funeral with military honours, one step down from a state funeral.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Mr Cameron said it would have been seen as extraordinary not to commemorate her life.

Asked about those who wanted to challenge his view of Lady Thatcher, the prime minister said: "Of course people have the right to disagree and take a different view.

"But when you're mourning the passing of an 87-year-old woman who was the first woman prime minister, who served for longer in the job than anyone for 150 years I think it's appropriate to show respect."

There were more than 50 guests associated with the Falkland Islands, including veterans from the 1982 conflict with Argentina, but Argentina's ambassador to London, Alicia Castro declined an invitation to attend.

Alan Southern, a former member of the Parachute Regiment who fought in the Falklands War, said: "Lady Thatcher was an absolutely wonderful lady. She loved the armed forces and she did so much for the country, she put the 'great' back in Great Britain."

Source: BBC News

 

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French Ministers Reveal Wealth

French government ministers have revealed details of their personal wealth as part of efforts by Francois Hollande to regain public trust.

The statistics were posted on a specially created website on Monday, on the orders of Mr Hollande.

The move followed the scandal surrounding former Budget Minister Jerome Cahuzac, who is charged with tax fraud over a secret bank account.

Mr Hollande's popularity ratings have plummeted in the wake of the scandal.

Each of France's 37 ministers is required to publish details of their personal finances.

The list of assets includes details of bank accounts, life assurance policies, property and other expensive items such as cars, art works and antiques.

The exercise is designed to be eye-catching, and dispel some of the public disenchantment with politics that has developed in recent weeks.

Jerome Cahuzac caused shock earlier this month when he admitted he had hidden about 600,000 euros in a Swiss bank account, having repeatedly denied it.

He resigned from his government position and is now being investigated for tax fraud.

President Hollande has also been embarrassed by revelations that his former Socialist Party treasurer, Jean-Jacques Augier, held personal investments in two offshore companies in the Cayman Islands.

The scandals have further damaged Mr Hollande's credibility among the French public.

But politicians from the left as well as the right have derided the president's demand for ministers to reveal their wealth - details of which emerged in the days leading up to Monday's deadline.

Health and Social Affairs Minister Marisol Touraine, said her declaration would show about 1.4 million euros in assets, based primarily on several properties in Paris.

The junior minister for the disabled, Marie-Arlette Carlotti, said she had two apartments and a house in southern France, worth a total of 565,000 euros.

Culture Minister Aurelie Filippetti said she owned a 70-square-metre (750-square-foot) flat in Paris, adding more light-heartedly that she also possessed a David Beckham T-shirt.

Housing Minister Cecile Duflot, of the Greens, revealed she owned a house worth 168,000 euros and two cars - a Renault Twingo worth 1,500 euros and a Renault 4L, worth 10,000 francs at the time of purchase in 2000.

On his list, Industrial Renewal Minister Arnaud Montebourg declared a designer lounge chair worth about 4,000 euros.

Mr Hollande's approval ratings were already suffering as a result of France's continuing economic problems, but have since nosedived.

When he was elected less than a year ago, he promised voters a government that would promote morality and integrity in public life.

In an apparent effort to regain the political initiative, Mr Hollande's government is also planning to table new laws obliging all members of parliament to declare their assets.

It also has plans for a special prosecutor to focus on corruption, and tougher penalties for those found guilty of fraud.

Source: BBC News

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French Senate Votes For Gay Marriage

France's upper house of parliament has voted to legalize gay marriage.

The bill - which was approved with only minor amendments - is now certain to become law after a final vote in the lower house, expected in May.

There have been several demonstrations in Paris both for and against the bill.

Gay rights organisations say homosexuals are being increasingly targeted amid opposition to government plans to give gay couples in France the right to marry and adopt children.

Friday's Senate vote, by a show of hands, came after senators had on Wednesday approved the first article of the bill allowing gay couples to marry and adopt, by 179 votes to 157.

Justice Minister Christiane Taubira praised the result, saying the Senate had strengthened French society "by granting the simple recognition of full citizenship to homosexual couples".

The bill is now set to become law after technical second readings in both houses of parliament.

On Thursday, some 5,000 people took part in a protest in Paris linking critics of the gay marriage bill to homophobia.

The rally came as an image apparently showing the victim of a homophobic attack went viral on social media.

Opponents of the bill have denied homophobia and denounced violence.

Opinion polls suggest that around 55-60% of French people support gay marriage, but only about 50% approve of gay adoption.

The anti-gay marriage lobby, backed by the Catholic Church and right-wing opposition, has already held large marches in Paris.

It argues the move would undermine an essential building block of society.

Source: BBC News

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Cyprus To Appeal For Extra Help

Portugal and Ireland are to be granted an extra seven years to pay back their emergency bailout loans.

The European Union and the IMF bailed out the Republic of Ireland in 2010 and Portugal in 2011.

The 17-member group that uses the euro currency agreed to the terms at a meeting of finance ministers in Dublin.

Meanwhile, the ministers also said a 10bn euro ($13bn; £8.5bn) EU bailout loan for Cyprus was ready for approval by member states.

That could happen by the end of the month and, if the IMF also gives the go-ahead, the first bailout money could be released by mid-May.

The plan for Ireland and Portugal is intended to give the countries' financial systems more time to recover from the debt crisis after their bailout loans run out.

Ireland's bailout money will run out later this year, and Portugal's will run out in 2014.

The Irish and Portuguese repayment extensions are expected to be backed by all 27 European Union members, which includes those outside the eurozone, later on Friday.

While confirming that up to 10bn euros in loans will be provided to Cyprus, the eurozone finance ministers also rejected reports that the country might be granted more financial assistance.

Earlier on Friday, Cyprus president Nicos Anastasiades had said he would appeal for extra assistance from the European Union.

On Thursday, it emerged that Cyprus would need to raise an extra 6bn euros to secure the 10bn euro bailout from Brussels and the IMF.

A draft document prepared by the country's creditors said the cost of the rescue had risen to 23bn euros from 17.5bn euros, with Cyprus now having to find 13bn euros of this.

A Cypriot official in Dublin told BBC economics correspondent Andrew Walker that for its part, Cyprus was not seeking more bailout money, but was seeking help from the EU to reduce the burden of the conditions to make the bailout possible.

Source: BBC News

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Cyprus To Sell Off Gold Reserves

Cyprus is to sell off much of its gold reserves to help finance part of its bailout.

An assessment by the European Commission says Cyprus must sell about 400m euros (£341m) worth of gold.

The country has already been forced to wind down one of its largest banks in order to qualify for a 10bn euro lifeline from international lenders.

Even with that bailout, it is predicted that the Cypriot economy will shrink by 8.7% this year.

Cyprus's total bullion reserves stood at 13.9 tonnes at the end of February, according to data from the World Gold Council.

At current prices, 400m euros' worth of gold amounts to about 10.36 tonnes of metal.

The sale will be the biggest bullion sale by a eurozone central bank since France sold 17.4 tonnes in the first half of 2009.

European finance ministers meet in Dublin on Friday to discuss the Cyprus bailout.

Analysts say it is very unlikely that other European Union states will become big sellers of the precious metal.

Portugal holds 382.5 tonnes of gold, worth some 14.76bn euros at current prices, in its reserves, while Spain's holdings stand at 281.6 tonnes, worth 10.8bn euros.

Italy is the world's fourth-largest gold holder, with 2,451.8 tonnes, worth 94.6bn euros.

Source: BBC News

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France's top rabbi Gilles Bernheim quits in plagiarism row

France's top rabbi, Gilles Bernheim, has resigned amid a scandal over plagiarism.
Rabbi Bernheim had admitted to plagiarising several authors and lying about an academic status on his CV, reports said.

He has resigned with immediate effect, the body governing France's Jewish congregations announced.

Members of the Central Israeli Consistory of France had been meeting in emergency session in Paris.
"He recognised his faults, apologised and gave explanations," Sammy Ghoslan, the consistory's vice-president, told AFP news agency.

His resignation as grand rabbi was "a solution that brings more serenity. We all agreed," he said.
Mr Ghoslan said a caretaker would take up Rabbi Bernheim's post while a permanent successor was chosen to lead France's 500,000-strong Jewish community - the largest in western Europe.

Rabbi Bernheim had been accused of plagiarising other authors for sections of his 2011 book, Forty Jewish Meditations.

And AFP said it had established that a claim on his CV that he had been awarded a prestigious but rarely granted philosophy academic status from Sorbonne University was also not true.

It has also emerged that parts of an essay he wrote arguing against gay marriage - cited by the then Pope Benedict XVI in an address in December - may also have been similar to pre-existing works.

Rabbi Bernheim had initially denied all wrongdoing, and had then asserted that the plagiarism in his book had been carried out by an assistant.

Until Tuesday he had still been insisting that to resign would be a desertion of duty.

Bernheim was rabbi of the largest synagogue in Paris and a leading Jewish intellectual when he became grand rabbi for a seven-year mandate beginning in 2009.

Source: BBC News

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Nobel Prizewinner, IVF Pioneer Robert Edwards Dead

 Robert Edwards, a Nobel prizewinner from Britain whose pioneering in vitro fertilization research led to the first test tube baby and has since brought millions of people into the world, died Wednesday at age 87.

The University of Cambridge, where he was a professor, said Edwards passed away peacefully in his sleep at his home just outside Cambridge.

Together with Dr. Patrick Steptoe, Edwards developed in vitro fertilization, or IVF, which resulted in the birth in 1978 of the world’s first test tube baby, Louise Brown. At the time, the two were accused of playing God and interfering with nature.

Since then, the European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology estimates that about 5 million babies have been born using the technique, which creates embryos in the laboratory before transferring them into a woman. Experts say about 350,000 babies are born by IVF every year, mostly to people with infertility problems, single people and gay and lesbian couples.

‘‘(Edwards) was an extraordinary scientist,’’ said Dr. Peter Braude, emeritus professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Kings College London, who was at Cambridge when Edwards and Steptoe were developing IVF.

‘‘There was such hysteria around the kind of work he was doing,’’ Braude said, noting that Edwards stopped his research for two years after he published details on how he had created embryos in the laboratory. ‘‘He wanted to work out what the right thing to do was, whether he should continue or whether he was out on a limb,’’ Braude said.

Braude said that Edwards collected donor eggs from women in Oldham, where Steptoe worked. Edwards then put the eggs into test tubes which he strapped to his legs to keep them warm before catching the train to Cambridge, where he would attempt to fertilize them in the laboratory.

After Brown was born, Braude recalled a celebration at Cambridge, where scientists toasted Edwards and Steptoe’s achievement by drinking champagne out of plastic cups.

Braude said public opinion has evolved considerably since then.

‘‘I think people now understand that (Edwards) only had the best motivation,’’ he said. ‘‘There are few biologists that have done something so practical and made a huge difference for the entire world.’’

In 2010, Edwards was awarded the Nobel prize in medicine or physiology for the development of IVF. Steptoe had already passed away; the Nobel prizes are not awarded posthumously. The Roman Catholic Church denounced the award, arguing that human life should only begin through intercourse and not artificially. The Vatican said Edwards ‘‘bore a moral responsibility for all subsequent developments in assisted reproduction technology and for all abuses made possible by IVF.’’

In 2011, Edwards was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II ‘‘for services to human reproductive biology.’’

Other scientists called Edwards a visionary who forever changed the lives of people helped by IVF and the medical community.

‘‘(Edwards') inspirational work in the early 60s led to a breakthrough that has enhanced the lives of millions of people worldwide,’’ said Mike Macnamee, chief executive of the IVF clinic that Edwards and Steptoe co-founded, in a statement. ‘‘It was a privilege to work with him and his passing is a great loss to us all.’’end of story marker.

Source: Boston News

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Thieves Steal 5 Tons of Nutella Chocolate Spread

Police said Monday an unknown number of culprits made off with 5 metric tons (5.5 tons) of "Nutella" chocolate-hazelnut spread from a parked trailer in the central German town of Bad Hersfeld over the weekend.

The gooey loot is worth an estimated 16,000 euros ($20,710).

Germans news agency dpa reported that thieves have previously stolen a load of energy drinks from the same location.

Source: Fox News

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Avon Products Eliminating More Than 400 Jobs

Avon is eliminating more than 400 positions and abandoning or restructuring smaller or underperforming businesses in Africa, the Middle East and Europe, including an exit from Ireland.

The company said Monday that the job cuts, which equate to about 1 percent of Avon’s 39,100 employees, will occur across all regions and segments. It is part of a turnaround plan under CEO Sheri McCoy, with the goal of achieving mid-single digit percentage revenue growth and $400 million in cost savings by 2016.

Avon expects to complete almost all the cuts before year’s end.

The New York company will take charges of around $35 million to $40 million before taxes and expects annualized savings of between $45 million and $50 million.

McCoy, who became CEO in April 2012, announced in December that the company would leave Vietnam and South Korea and that it would cut 1,500 jobs in all.

The direct seller of beauty products has been struggling to turn around its business at home and in emerging markets. It has also wrestled with a bribery probe in China that began in 2008 and has since spread to other countries.

In its most recent quarter, Avon Products Inc. posted a wider fourth-quarter loss as it marked down the value of its Silpada jewelry business and restructured. It was still better than Wall Street had expected, however, and McCoy said there were signs that business was stabilizing.

Source: The Associated Press

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