ABU DHABI (AFP) -- Masterpieces by Leonardo da Vinci and Vincent van Gogh will be among 300 works displayed at the Louvre Abu Dhabi, the Emirate said Sunday, as it aims to become a leader in fine art.The museum, built at a cost of 500 million euros ($630 million) and set to open in December 2015, will feature paintings and sculptures from 13 of France's most renowned collections spanning from pre-Bronze Age to Pop Art, it said in a statement."This will be the first time many of these works will

Culture Oct. 12, 2014

SHANGHAI (AFP) -- Roger Federer edged a resilient Gilles Simon of France 7-6 (8/6), 7-6 (7/2) to win the Shanghai Masters and claim the 81st title of his career on Sunday.The 17-time Grand Slam winner had blown away world number one Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals but he found a stubborn opponent in Simon at Shanghai's QiZhong Tennis Centre.And the 33-year-old needed two tie-breaks before dousing Simon to making it back-to-back Masters victories following his win in Cincinnati in August.The Sw

Sports Oct. 12, 2014

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- A Texas health care worker who treated an Ebola victim has tested positive for the deadly tropical fever, dealing a blow to the worldwide battle to stem the outbreak.More than 4,000 people have died of Ebola in seven countries since the start of the year, according to the World Health Organization, and the epidemic appears to be outpacing efforts to fight it.If preliminary test results are confirmed, the Texas patient would be the second person diagnosed with the illness and

World News Oct. 12, 2014

CAIRO (AFP) -- US Secretary of State John Kerry Sunday called for a resumption of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, saying both sides had to be helped to make "tough choices" for lasting stability."Ceasefire is not peace," Kerry told a donors' conference aimed at raising some $4 billion to help the war-torn Gaza Strip rebuild after a 50-day war with Israel in the summer."We got to get back to the table and help people make tough choices, real choices ... choices about more than just a ceasefire,"

World News Oct. 12, 2014

HONG KONG (AFP) -- Hong Kong's pro-democracy protesters have an "almost zero chance" of changing Beijing's stance and securing free elections despite more than two weeks of rallies, the city's embattled leader Leung Chun-ying said Sunday.Demonstrators calling for Beijing to grant full democracy to the former British colony have paralysed parts of Hong Kong, prompting clashes with elements who oppose the blockades and widespread disruption.Despite repeated orders to disperse, the rallies have tak

World News Oct. 12, 2014

ANA Holdings Inc. and Japan Airlines Co., the nation's two largest carriers, canceled more flights today as typhoon winds disrupted travel for a second week.Typhoon Vongfong prompted ANA to cancel 101 flights, affecting about 16,600 passengers, the airline said in a faxed statement. Japan Airlines halted 49 flights today and five tomorrow, it said by fax. The storm weakened after crossing Okinawa, Japan's southernmost prefecture, with winds gusting to 70 knots (130 kilometers per hour), accordin

World News Oct. 12, 2014

WASHINGTON (AP) -- World financial leaders are pledging to act boldly and ambitiously to give a weak and uneven global recovery some momentum, but they have often fallen short in the past when trying to follow through on their promises.The pledge from the International Monetary Fund's policy-setting committee comes after a week of volatile swings in the financial markets _ powered by concerns that parts of Europe may be sliding into another recession.The IMF called increasing economic growth an

World Business Oct. 12, 2014

CAIRO (AP) --  The United States promised $212 million in immediate assistance to the devastated Gaza Strip on Sunday yet urged Palestinians and Israelis to return to peace negotiations to break a cycle of violence that has yielded three wars in six years.People in Gaza "need our help desperately _ not tomorrow, not next week, but they need it now,'' U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said at an international donor conference. He said more than 20,000 homes need to be rebuilt and 100,000 people

World News Oct. 12, 2014

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- A Texas health care worker who treated a man who later died of Ebola has tested positive for the disease in a preliminary test, doctors said Sunday, the second person to be diagnosed with the illness on US soil."We knew a second case could be a reality, and we've been preparing for this possibility," said Dr David Lakey, commissioner of the Texas Department of State Health Services."We are broadening our team in Dallas and working with extreme diligence to prevent further spr

World News Oct. 12, 2014

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) -- The Dutch team investigating the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over Eastern Ukraine says the crash was likely caused by the plane being hit by multiple ``high-energy objects from outside the aircraft.'' The preliminary report published Tuesday by the Dutch Safety Board stopped short of saying the Boeing 777 was shot down by a surface-to-air missile, but its findings appear to point to that conclusion.The Boeing 777 was blown out of the sky July 17 over reb

World News Sept. 9, 2014

GENEVA (AFP) -- Surging levels of carbon dioxide sent greenhouse gases in the atmosphere to a new record in 2013, while oceans, which absorb the emissions, have become more acidic than ever, the UN said on Tuesday."We know without any doubt that our climate is changing and our weather is becoming more extreme due to human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels," said Michel Jarraud, the head of the World Meteorological Organization that released a report on the issue on Tuesday."We must

Sept. 9, 2014

Organisers are confident a "frugal" and unflashy Asian Games can put South Korea's Incheon on the map despite low ticket sales raising the prospect of swathes of empty seats.Days before the start, only 10 percent of tickets had sold for the Olympic-style event, which has mainstream sports as well as niche pursuits like sepak takraw and kabaddi.Interest has not been helped by North Korea's decision not to send their squad of 350 well-drilled cheerleaders, who proved a big attraction at previous e

Sports Sept. 9, 2014

SRINAGAR, India (AFP) -- The death toll from devastating floods in India and Pakistan rose to 400 on Tuesday with hundreds of thousands more stranded, some "neck-deep" in water, authorities said.A huge rescue effort is under way in the divided mountainous region of Kashmir after monsoon rains submerged hundreds of villages, in the deadliest flooding there in over half a century.Rajesh Kumar, police inspector general for the Jammu region on the Indian side, said Tuesday the toll had risen to arou

World News Sept. 9, 2014

CAIRO (AFP) -- US Secretary of State John Kerry will meet Arab foreign ministers in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday as he bids for a broad coalition against the Islamic State, a senior Egyptian foreign ministry official said.The talks in the Saudi port city of Jeddah, which will continue into Thursday, will be attended by ministers from Egypt, Jordan and the six Gulf Arab states as well as Iraq, the official told AFP.The ministers "are going to meet Kerry on Wednesday and Thursday in Jeddah as part of

World News Sept. 9, 2014

South Korea's central bank is expected to freeze the key interest rate in September as it monitors the impact of last month's rate cut and the government's stimulus measures, a survey showed Tuesday.The Bank of Korea lowered the base interest rate by a quarter percentage point to 2.25 percent last month in a widely-expected move to join the government's efforts to spur the economy, but a clear majority of market watchers didn't expect a rate cut for a second month in a row. According to the surv

Sept. 9, 2014