Billings and Beirnes score two goals each as Toronto Rock beat Edmonton Rush 10-9

EDMONTON - Garrett Billings and Kasey Beirnes had two goals and two assists apiece as the Toronto Rock won 10-9 over the Edmonton Rush on Sunday in the National Lacrosse League.Josh Sanderson and Scott Evans also had two-goal games while Stephan Leblanc and Rob Hellyer added each for the Rock. Toronto improved to 2-0 despite a difficult back-to-back start on the road, including a 13-11 win over the...

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Acceleration, not speed, behind BMW diesel launch in U.S.

WOODCLIFF LAKE, New Jersey (Reuters) - BMW has a message for the incorrigible speed freaks looking for a more politically correct set of wheels in this era of energy efficiency: switch to a diesel.The German luxury carmaker is rolling out a new range of sporty new diesel sedans in the United States this year to complement its sole diesel on offer - the X5 xDrive 35d sport utility vehicle - and believes...

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UK finance job sackings and suspensions at five-year high: law firm

LONDON (Reuters) - The number of financial services staff sacked or suspended in Britain last year for reasons such as wrongdoing reached the highest level in five years, law firm Pinsent Masons said on Monday.Citing figures obtained through a Freedom of Information request, Pinsent Masons said 1,373 individuals were dismissed or suspended from financial services jobs - as distinct from those who...

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Ivory Coast New Year's death toll rises to 64

 Ivory Coast's health minister says the death toll in the New Year's stampede has risen to 64.Health Minister Raymonde Goudou, speaking to the press, said three more people died in addition to the 61 who were killed from being trampled when thousands left a New Year's fireworks display. She said 26 people who had been missing after the chaos of the stampede were located in various hospitals in...

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Mali's Ansar Dine: Islamists to resume hostilities

BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — An Islamist group in northern Mali says it's suspending its pledge to halt hostilities less than a month after it agreed to do so.The group Ansar Dine said negotiations with the Malian government are ultimately aimed at a military intervention to oust the Islamists, and are not true peace talks. Still, the group said that it remains committed to a dialogue with the Malian government...

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Nigeria police: Hyundai paid $187K to free workers

LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) — Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. paid about $187,000 to free four abducted South Korean workers and their local colleague, a lucrative ransom showing the continuing allure of kidnapping in Nigeria's oil-rich southern delta, police said Friday.South Korean officials declined to say whether they paid a ransom when announcing the hostages' release on Dec. 22, following the pattern of...

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Attacks on Ivorian military kill 1 in Abidjan

 Authorities in Ivory Coast say at least one person is dead after two simultaneous attacks on Ivorian security forces.Cherif Moussa, chief of communications for the army, said Friday that the attacks took place overnight in the commercial capital of Abidjan.The United Nations said it "firmly condemns" the latest violence against members of the Ivorian armed forces.In a statement, the U.N. special...

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EU to re-launch aid to Guinea after vote date set

 The European Union says it has agreed to re-launch €174.3 million in development funds to Guinea.The move comes after the West African nation finally set a date for long-delayed legislative elections.The announcement on Friday said Guinea's government had "presented a credible timetable for the organization of legislative elections."The head of Guinea's electoral commission announced earlier...

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Mali militants seek peace after UN backs force

The al-Qaida-linked group that controls much of northern Mali and other rebels agreed Friday to cease hostilities in the areas they control, a day after the United Nations backed a regional plan to oust the Islamists from power in a military intervention next year.Ansar Dine, which controls the northern cities of Timbuktu and Kidal, and a secular rebel group known as the NMLA made the concessions...

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Mozambique highway collision kills 14

Police in Mozambique say 14 people died when a tire burst on a speeding minibus, causing the driver to lose control and collide with an oncoming vehicle.Radio Mozambique cited police as saying 11 people were also injured in the accident on Friday. It happened 50 kilometers (30 miles) north of the capital, Maputo.Police say all of those killed were on the minibus that had been going too fast, and that...

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South African president visits Mandela in hospital

 South Africa's president has visited former leader Nelson Mandela in a hospital, and the presidency says Mandela continues to respond to treatment.The office of President Jacob Zuma says he saw Mandela on Saturday morning in Pretoria, the capital, and assured the anti-apartheid icon that he has the support of all South Africans and the world.Mandela, who is 94, has been hospitalized since Dec....

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Russia welcomes any offer to give Assad refuge

BEIRUT (AP) — Russia would welcome any country's offer of safe haven for Syrian President Bashar Assad, but has no plans to make one of its own, Moscow's foreign minister said in the latest comments to suggest a growing distance between the two allies.Sergey Lavrov's remarks on Friday night were among the clearest signs yet that Russia could be preparing for a Syria without Assad, as rebel pressure...

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Bombing at political rally kills 9 in Pakistan

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — A suicide bomber in Pakistan killed nine people including a provincial government official at a political rally held Saturday by a party that has opposed the Taliban, officials said.The rally in Peshawar, the capital of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, was held by the Awami National Party, whose members have been repeatedly targeted by the Taliban.Among the dead...

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No new vote in Venezuela if Chavez sworn in late: official

CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela will not call fresh elections if Hugo Chavez's cancer prevents him from taking office by January 10, the head of Congress said on Saturday, despite a constitutional mandate that the swearing-in take place on that date.Chavez is recovering in Cuba from a six-hour cancer operation that followed his October re-election. The socialist leader has not been heard from for nearly...

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3-day trip becomes 3-week ordeal for 2 Jamaicans

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — It was supposed to be a three-day fishing trip at most. It turned into a three-week ordeal, drifting under an intense sun for hundreds of miles in the Caribbean in a small boat with a broken motor.The two Jamaican fishermen survived by eating raw fish they caught and drinking water from melted ice they had brought to preserve their catch. The Colombian navy finally plucked...

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AP PHOTOS: Images from Egypt's constitution vote

Egyptians returned to the polls to vote on a referendum on an Islamist-backed constitution.Preliminary results released by the Muslim Brotherhood show that the disputed constitution has received a "yes" majority of more than 70 percent in the second and final round of voting. The referendum was held over two days, on Dec. 15 and 22.Here's a look at AP photos from Egypt's electi...

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