A Danish court has given another four weeks in custody to two men accused of helping a gunman who killed two people in attacks in Copenhagen this month.
	The Copenhagen police said today that the men, who cannot be named under a court order, were being held until March 26.
	They are suspected of helping Omar El-Hussein, who used an assault rifle to kill a Danish filmmaker attending a free speech event Feb. 14 in Copenhagen.
	Hours later, El-Hussein killed a Jewish security guard outside a synagogue on Feb. 15 with a handgun. Five police officers also were wounded in both episodes. El-Hussein was shot dead in a police shootout later that day.

Custody for 2 men suspected of helping gunman extended

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Nepal's government is close to extending the permits for individuals who had to abandon their attempts to climb Mount Everest after last year's deadly avalanche, a mountaineering official said today.
	Chief of the Mountaineering Department Puspa Raj Katuwal said a proposal has been sent to the Cabinet and is likely to be approved by the government soon. The three-month climbing season on Everest begins in March.
	That would allow the more than 300 climbers denied their summit attempt to return anytime by 2019 for another try.
	The avalanche that killed 16 Sherpa guides last April while they were hauling gear near base camp was the worst disaster on Everest, the world's highest mountain.
	The government previously said it would let expedition teams come back without paying the permit fees again, but it was difficult for all the teams' members to decide on a single year to return. The confusion was threatening to chase climbers to the northern climbing route in China.
	Katuwal said once 

Nepal close to extending permits for canceled Everest climbs

A new report into widespread sex abuse by the late BBC entertainer Jimmy Savile has found that victims' complaints about his activities were ignored.
	The report released today showed an extensive pattern of abuse at numerous National Health Service hospitals where the celebrity broadcaster was given wide access to patients even though he was known by some staff to be a sexual predator.
	It details numerous cases of abuse of patients who were helpless to protect themselves.
	Savile was an active fundraiser who had met with British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher to talk about his charity work and also received a knighthood.
	His reputation as a popular TV personality collapsed after he died in 2011, when hundreds of witnesses and victims came forward accusing him of sexual abuse.

Jimmy Savile report finds widespread sex abuse with impunity

IS militants have moved a large group of Christians they abducted to one of their strongholds as fighting raged between the extremists and Kurdish and Christian militiamen for control of a chain of villages along a strategic river in northeastern Syria.
	The Khabur River in Hassakeh province, which borders Turkey and Iraq, has become the latest battleground in the fight against the Islamic State group in Syria.
	It is predominantly Kurdish but also has populations of Arabs and predominantly Christian Assyrians and Armenians.
	In pre-dawn attacks, the IS on Monday attacked communities nestled along the river, seizing at least 70 people, including many women and children. Thousands of others fled to safer areas, activists and state-run media said.
	The fate of those kidnapped, almost all of them Assyrian Christians, remained unclear Wednesday, two days after they were seized. Relatives of the group searched frantically for word on the fate of the loved ones, but none came.
	"It's a ...

Abducted Syrian Christians moved to militant stronghold

A North Korean shipping company that famously tried to hide fighter jets under a cargo of sugar has tried to evade ensuing UN sanctions by renaming most of its vessels in an attempt to obscure their origins, a new report says.
	The effort by Pyongyang-headquartered Ocean Maritime Management Company, Ltd. Is detailed in the report by a panel of experts that monitors sanctions on North Korea.
	The UN Security Council holds consultations today on the report, which also says North Korea's government persists with its nuclear and missile programs in defiance of council resolutions.
	The council last year imposed sanctions on OMM after Panama in 2013 seized a ship it operated that carried undeclared military equipment from Cuba. Panamanian authorities found two Cuban fighter jets, missiles and live munitions beneath the Chong Chon Gang's cargo of sugar.
	The council's sanctions committee said that violated a U.N. Arms embargo imposed in response to North Korea's nuclear and missile ...

UN: North Korean company renames ships to evade sanctions

The killing of a 14-year-old boy by a policeman during an anti-government protest is raising already high tensions in Venezuela amid a crackdown on the opposition and crippling economic problems.
	Protesters hurling rocks clashed with police backed by armored vehicles late into the night, and the country was braced for further demonstrations yesterday after the student, identified as Kluiverth Roa, was shot in the head and killed during a confrontation in San Cristobal, the capital of a restive western state.
	Police officer Javier Mora Ortiz, 23, confessed to firing on the boy with plastic ammunition, officials said.
	A photo and video of the student lying in a pool of blood, his backpack hanging over his shoulder, as a man frantically tries to staunch the bleeding and others scream and clutch their heads in horror rocketed around social media. Mourners were gathering in San Cristobal for the funeral, yesterday afternoon.
	Ruling party officials, including President Nicolas Maduro, ..

Clashes, tear gas after police kill boy at Venezuela protest

A man has pleaded not guilty to state charges of supporting terrorism and money laundering.
	A prosecutor says Abdirahman Sheik Mohamud provided support including a computer tablet to people engaged in terrorism in the Middle East during a visit there.
	A judge set bond at USD 1 million for Mohamud during a hearing today, refusing a prosecutor's request for a USD 2.5 million bond.
	Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O'Brien said Mohamud was arrested Saturday because he posed a public risk locally.
	Defense attorney Sam Shamansky said Mohamud didn't pose a risk to anyone and noted he'd been investigated for a year and a half before he was taken into custody.
	Federal charges also are expected.

US man pleads not guilty to supporting terrorism charges

A former Guatemalan president who was sentenced to nearly six years in prison for accepting USD 2.5 million in bribes from Taiwan was released today from a US prison and was returning to his home country.
	Alfonso Portillo was released from a suburban Denver prison where he had been incarcerated since last year. The former president was credited with time served in Guatemala, where he faces no further charges, said Libna Bonilla, the embassy's deputy chief of mission in Washington.
	"He is considered a free man in Guatemala," Bonilla said.
	Accompanied by the Guatemalan consul in Denver, Portillo was taking commercial flights to Guatemala City, Bonilla said. Portillo was sentenced in federal court in New York in 2014 to nearly six years in prison for accepting USD 2.5 million in bribes from the government of Taiwan to continue to recognize the Asian nation diplomatically.
	The US Bureau of Prisons confirmed Portillo's release from the minimum-security Federal Correctional Institution .

Ex-Guatemalan president freed from US prison in bribery case

MetLife's home lending unit will pay USD 123.5 million to end an investigation into allegations it gave government-backed mortgages to people who didn't meet federal requirements.
	The Justice Department said today that the mortgages were insured by the Federal Housing Authority. It says MetLife knew many of the loans didn't meet federal requirements but it rarely informed the FHA about the problem. According to the agency, during some periods in 2009 and 2010 MetLife Bank knew that a majority of the loans it was originating had material or significant deficiencies.
	It says the FHA and taxpayers were stuck with the bill when defaults followed.
	The New York company says it cooperated with the investigation and set aside money for the settlement. It exited the business in 2012.

MetLife will pay gov't USD 123.5M in mortgage settlement

Senate Democrats have agreed to a Republican plan to fund the Homeland Security Department without immigration provisions opposed by President Barack Obama.
	Spending for the department, which oversees the nation's borders, expires Friday at midnight. The showdown stems from Republican efforts to undermine Obama's executive order to protect millions of people from deportation.
	Democratic Minority Leader Harry Reid told reporters today that he welcomed the opportunity to vote on the measure and said every Democrat will back it.
	Reid said he looked forward to working with Republicans to get the measure done in the next 24 hours.
	Reid spoke after a closed-door Democratic meeting. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has proposed decoupling Homeland Security funding from immigration ahead of Friday's midnight deadline for the agency.

Democrats agree to plan to fund Homeland Department

Google is releasing a set of tools designed for businesses and employees who want to get work done on smartphones running on the company's Android software.
	The technology unveiled today launches Google's attempt to turn Android phones into the digital hub of people's personal and professional lives. The expansion will pit Google Inc against Microsoft Corp and BlackBerry Inc, which have been focusing on the corporate market for years.
	Google will also be battling its biggest rival in mobile computing, Apple Inc, which forged a partnership with IBM Corp last year to build more iPhone and iPad applications tailored for businesses and government agencies.
	Google announced its Android for Work program at a conference eight months ago, but needed more time to test the technology before its release.

Google releases work tools designed for Android phones

Declassified al-Qaida documents obtained after the 2011 raid of Osama bin Laden's Pakistan compound have been presented at the US trial of a suspect charged in a British terrorism plot.
	Prosecutors rested their case after presenting the evidence today against Abid Naseer.
	The 28-year-old Pakistani man is defending himself in federal court in Brooklyn. He has pleaded not guilty and plans to take the stand in his defense.
	Prosecutors say the British plot was part of a broader al-Qaida conspiracy calling on other cells to attack civilians in New York and Denmark.
	Some of the al-Qaida documents make reference to plots in Europe, the UK and Russia. One reference plans to bomb a pipeline or the US embassy in Russia.
	An FBI agent who recovered the evidence also testified.

Documents from Osama bin Laden raid read at US terror trial

A police investigation of veteran pop star Cliff Richard relating to claims of sexual assault has "increased significantly in size," a British lawmaker said today.
	Police said in August they questioned the 74-year-old singer and searched a house belonging to him after receiving what they called "an allegation of a sexual nature."
	Richard, a fixture on the British pop scene since the late 1950s, has not been arrested or charged. He recorded hit singles in the pre-Beatles era and has been popular ever since, receiving a knighthood in 1995.
	In a statement issued today, he called the allegations "absurd and untrue."
	"I have never, in my life, assaulted anyone and I remain confident that the truth will prevail," he said, adding that he had cooperated fully with police.
	Lawmaker Keith Vaz earlier today said he had received information from police that the investigation into Richard now involves more than one allegation.
	Richard is among several high-profile figures in Britain's ...

Cliff Richard sex assault probe has expanded, says lawmaker

Three seamen held hostage for about three weeks after pirates attacked their tanker off Nigeria have been freed and will be repatriated, the ship's management company says.
	The men, two Greeks and a Pakistani, are currently undergoing medical examinations and receiving treatment in Nigeria, Aeolos Management said today.
	They were abducted on Feb 3, when unidentified gunmen attacked the Maltese-flagged Kalamos tanker off Nigeria, killing the first officer.
	Aeolos Management said it would not release any information on how the captives' freedom was obtained, to avoid encouraging future attacks of the sort.
	Shipping companies are often forced to pay ransoms to free vessels and crews from pirates' hands, but rarely make any details public.

3 seamen seized in deadly pirate attack off Nigeria are free

In his sharpest criticism yet, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said today that world powers "have given up" on stopping Iran from developing nuclear weapons in ongoing negotiations.
	Netanyahu's comments, at a meeting of his Likud Party outside of Jerusalem, come as he plans to address the US Congress on the nuclear negotiations.
	The West fears Iran could build an atomic bomb with its nuclear program. Iran says its program is for peaceful purposes. The Islamic Republic is now negotiating a final deal with the US, Britain, France, Russia, China and Germany, with hopes of on a preliminary deal in March and a follow-up pact in June.
	Netanyahu, as well as many in Israel, view a nuclear-armed Iran as a threat to its very existence, citing Tehran's repeated calls for Israel's destruction and its support for groups like Hezbollah.
	In his remarks, Netanyahu said that the greatest challenge Israel faces is "the threat of Iran arming itself with nuclear weapons with a declared goal 

Netanyahu: World powers 'have given up' in Iran nuke talks

Uber is partnering with hotel chain Starwood to give riders a bit more incentive to choose the ride-hailing service over a taxi.
	Uber passengers can now earn one Starwood rewards point for each dollar they spend on a ride in a car found through the San Francisco-based company's mobile app. Guests spending the night at one of Starwood's 1,200 hotels will earn two to four points per dollar spent, depending on their level of status with Stamford, Connecticut-based Starwood.
	Free hotel nights start at 3,000 points for the lowest tier of hotels, like the Four Points by Sheraton Tucson Airport in Arizona, and can be as high as 35,000 points a night for properties like the St Regis Princeville Resort in Hawaii.
	This is the first global deal where ground transportation passengers can earn hotel points for trips.
	This potentially helps Uber in big cities such as New York, San Paulo, Brazil and Bangalore, India where it's going head to head with established taxi companies and car ...

Uber partners with Starwood, giving hotel points for rides

A key player in Congress' foreign policymaking posture pressed Secretary of State John Kerry today about sensitive nuclear talks with Iran, saying Tehran is stonewalling international inspectors about its past work on an atomic bomb.
	California Republican Rep Ed Royce, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told Kerry at a hearing that members of the panel have serious concerns about the direction of the talks.
	"I'm hearing less about dismantlement and more about the performance of Iran's nuclear program. That's particularly disturbing when you consider that international inspectors report that Iran has still not revealed its past bomb work," Royce told Kerry.
	The secretary testified in the House two days after returning to Washington from the latest round of talks in Geneva involving Iran, the US and five other world powers.
	US and Iranian officials reported progress on getting to a deal that would clamp down on Tehran's nuclear activities for at least 10 years but ...

Representatives grill Kerry on aspects of Iran nuclear talks

Motorola is updating its low-cost smartphone, the Moto E, as it targets first-time smartphone buyers worldwide.
	Among the improvements over last year's model: The camera now has auto-focusing, whereas the older model had a fixed-focus lens that didn't compensate for how far away the subject was. The new Moto E will also have a front-facing camera for selfies, though images won't be as sharp as the 5 megapixels on the rear. There's also a model with 4G cellular connectivity. Last year's model was available only for slower, 3G networks.
	In the US, Motorola will target prepaid customers, as well as those looking to buy children their first smartphones.
	The 4G model will cost USD 150 in the US, while the 3G will go for USD 120, both without contract requirements. The screen measures 4.5 inches diagonally, slightly larger than before.
	Motorola, which Lenovo Group bought from Google Inc in October, has been trying to set itself apart from other phone makers by selling cheaper phones ...

Motorola aims new phone at first-time smartphone buyers

A famed 81-year-old Chinese dissident writer was given a suspended two and a half year prison sentence today on charges of running an illegal business, apparently because he published articles critical of the country's propaganda chief.
	A lawyer for Huang Zerong, who uses the pen name Tie Liu, said his client was also fined USD 5,000. The lawyer, Liu Xiaoyuan, said Huang denied running an illegal business, a charge that was related to a self-published magazine Huang distributed for free.
	A vague charge of causing trouble lodged at the time of Huang's detention in September was dropped before the trial.
	"Clearly this is a compromise outcome. He was held for five months for nothing," Liu said in a telephone interview.
	Huang was taken from his Beijing home after publishing articles criticizing propaganda chief Liu Yunshan, a member of the ruling Communist Party's all-powerful Politburo Standing Committee, for tightening controls over the news media.
	His magazine, Small Scars from ...

Suspended sentence for 81-year-old Chinese dissident writer

A federal jury says Apple should pay nearly USD 533 million to resolve claims that the payment system tied to its iTunes product infringes on patents issued to a business named Smartflash.
	Smartflash said in a 2013 complaint that the patents cover a portable data carrier for storing data and managing access to it through payment information rules.
	Apple Inc says it plans to appeal the decision and that Smartflash was "exploiting our patent system to seek royalties for technology Apple invented."
	The litigation was filed in the Tyler, Texas, division of the US District of Court, Eastern District of Texas.
	In 2011, a federal judge reversed another jury verdict against Apple from a Tyler, Texas, patent trial in which the software company Mirror World was awarded USD 625.5 million.

Federal jury orders Apple to pay USD 532.9M in patent dispute

A panel of experts appointed by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met for the first time today to discuss what he should say in a statement marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, fueling speculation that he may water down previous government apologies for the country's wartime past.
	Japan issued a landmark apology on the 50th anniversary in 1995 under then-Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama, for the first time acknowledging its colonization and aggression in parts of Asia before and during the war. In 2005, then-Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi also apologized.
	A key question is whether Abe will use the same terms such as "colonial rule" and "aggression" in his statement.
	Abe appointed the 16-member panel 10 academics, three business leaders, two journalists and an international aid worker to seek advice on what he should say on Aug. 15, the anniversary of the war's end.
	Abe told the panel he hopes to get their views on what Japan has learned from the past, how ...

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