Syria army quits base on strategic Aleppo road

affiliate marketing BEIRUT (Reuters) – The Syrian army abandoned its last base near the northern town of Saraqeb after a fierce assault by rebels, further isolating the strategically important second city Aleppo from the capital.But in a political setback to forces battling to topple President Bashar al-Assad, the United Nations said...

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Google's Android software in 3 out of 4 smartphones

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‘Wreck-It Ralph’: what the critics say about Disney’s new animated film

affiliate marketing LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – Critics love “Wreck-It Ralph.”The new Disney animated adventure has attracted an 84 percent “fresh” rating on the critics aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, trouncing the scores of recent Pixar films like “Brave” and “Cars 2.” The film centers on an arcade game villain who tires of being the bad...

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Germany’s Merck halts supply of cancer drug to Greek hospitals

affiliate marketing FRANKFURT (Reuters) – German pharmaceuticals firm Merck KGaA is no longer delivering cancer drug Erbitux to Greek hospitals, a spokesman said on Saturday, the latest sign of how an economic and budget crisis is hurting frontline public services.Drugmakers raised concerns with EU leaders earlier this year over supplies...

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Power sputters back in New York following Sandy

NEW YORK (AP) — More New Yorkers awoke Saturday morning to power being restored for the first time since Superstorm Sandy pummeled the region, and those whose lights were back on celebrated it, but patience was wearing thin among those in the region who had been without power for most of the week.From storm-scarred New Jersey to parts of Connecticut, a widespread lack of gasoline frustrated people...

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Syrian rebels kill 28 soldiers, several executed

affiliate marketing BEIRUT (Reuters) – Anti-government rebels killed 28 soldiers on Thursday in attacks on three army checkpoints around Saraqeb, a town on Syria’s main north-south highway, a monitoring group said.Some of the dead were shot after they had surrendered, according to video footage. Rebels berated them, calling them “Assad’s...

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Apple rolls out iPad mini to shorter lines

SYDNEY/NEW YORK (Reuters) - The launch of Apple Inc's iPad mini attracted smaller crowds from Sydney to New York on Friday than have been typical for previous Apple product debuts, events marked by people lining up for hours or even days. A proliferation of comparable rival devices may have sapped some interest for the device, which is priced above rival gadgets from Google Inc and Amazon.com...

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“Hunger Games” sticks with director Lawrence for sequels

affiliate marketing LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Francis Lawrence has signed on to direct the final two installments of the hit movie “The Hunger Games,” movie studio Lionsgate said on Thursday.The announcement follows months of rumors that Lionsgate might go with a different director to helm the “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay,” – the final...

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Merkel seeks coalition unity for 2013 election challenges

affiliate marketing BERLIN (Reuters) – German Chancellor Angela Merkel is under pressure to resolve a dispute on taxes and welfare between her centre-right coalition partners this weekend in order to present a united front before elections in 2013.The challenge for Merkel’s conservatives and their junior Free Democrat (FDP) partners...

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Tempers rise as temps fall after Sandy

Tempers are beginning to flare as Sandy's victims woke in cold, dark homes today to face yet another grinding day of waiting for help while temperatures are forecast to drop into the 30s with a possible Nor'easter on the way.Nearly 4 million people spent a fourth day without power and were told some will have to wait weeks.In the meantime, they waited for hours in line yet again for scarce gasoline...

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Apple's Cook fields his A-team before a wary Wall Street

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Apple Inc Chief Executive Tim Cook's new go-to management team of mostly familiar faces failed to drum up much excitement on Wall Street, driving its shares to a three-month low on Wednesday. The world's most valuable technology company, which had faced questions about a visionary-leadership vacuum following the death of Steve Jobs, on Monday stunned investors by announcing...

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Hurricane Sandy: outdoor filming in NYC halted until at least Friday

affiliate marketing LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – The cameras still aren’t rolling Wednesday on many television and film productions in New York City, and the devastation left by Hurricane Sandy may push delays further into the week.For the time being, those films and shows that do resume shooting will have do so on a set and not on the...

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Washington pot activists push for driving curbs to help pass bill

affiliate marketing OLYMPIA, Washington (Reuters) – Marijuana activists in Washington state hope voters will be reassured by strict new “stoned driving” standards, despite opposition from medical cannabis users who say the limits would make it hard for them to ever drive legally.Washington is among three states voting on Tuesday on whether...

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Storm-crippled subway creaks back to life

NEW YORK (AP) — Subways started rolling in much of New York City on Thursday for the first time since Superstorm Sandy crippled the nation's largest transit system. Traffic crawled over bridges, where police enforced mandatory carpooling.Ridership was light in the morning, and the trains couldn't take some New Yorkers where they needed to go. There were no trains in downtown Manhattan and other hard-hit...

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Syrian air force on offensive after failed truce

affiliate marketing AMMAN (Reuters) – Syrian warplanes bombed rebel targets with renewed intensity on Tuesday after the end of a widely ignored four-day truce between President Bashar al-Assad‘s forces and insurgents.State television said “terrorists” had assassinated an air force general, Abdullah Mahmoud al-Khalidi, in a Damascus suburb,...

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In hurricane, Twitter proves a lifeline despite pranksters

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - As Hurricane Sandy pounded the U.S. Atlantic coast on Monday night, knocking out electricity and Internet connections, millions of residents turned to Twitter as a part-newswire, part-911 hotline that hummed through the night even as some websites failed and swathes of Manhattan fell dark. But the social network also became a fertile ground for pranksters who...

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