Decision day for second Greek bailout despite financing gaps

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Euro zone finance ministers are expected to approve a second bailout for Greece on Monday to try to draw a line under months of uncertainty that has shaken the currency bloc, although work remains to be done to make the numbers add up.

Diplomats and economists say they do not expect the package to resolve Greece's economic problems. That could take a decade or more, a bleak prospect that brought thousands of Greeks onto the streets to protest against austerity measures on Sunday. continue reading here

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Greeks strike against IMF/EU austerity before crucial

ATHENS (Reuters) - Striking Greek workers denounced a new wave austerity on Friday as a demand too far by the IMF and EU, but Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos told the nation it had to decide within days whether to take the pain and stay in the euro or not.

Police fired teargas as black-masked protesters threw petrol bombs, stones and bottles in central Athens. The biggest police trade union said it would issue arrest warrants for Greece's international lenders for subverting democracy, and refused to "fight against our brothers."
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ReutersBy Karolina Tagaris and Harry Papachristou | Reuters –

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Prince William gives UK long-awaited royal wedding

LONDON – Prince William finally became engaged to longtime girlfriend Kate Middleton, giving her his late mother's sapphire and diamond engagement ring, as Britain looked forward to its biggest royal wedding since Prince Charles married Lady Diana Spencer almost 30 years ago.

Royal officials announced Tuesday that the couple will marry next spring or summer in London, ending years of rumored splits, reconciliations and will-they, won't-they speculation.

William is second in line to the British throne after Charles, his father. Kate and William's first child would move ahead of his younger brother Prince Harry to become third in line to the throne.

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By JILL LAWLESS, Associated Press Jill Lawless, Associated Press

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Pope Benedict XVI's visit to the United Kingdom

Pope Benedict XVI's visit to the United Kingdom from 16 to 19 September 2010 was the first state visit by a pope to the United Kingdom (Pope John Paul II made a pastoral, rather than state, visit to Great Britain in 1982). The visit was in response to an invitation from Queen Elizabeth II, with the beatification of Cardinal Newman as a "pastoral highlight".

The pope was received in Edinburgh by Elizabeth II; by meeting her in Scotland the pope avoided greeting her in her religious capacity as Supreme Governor of the Church of England. His visit included meetings with First Minister of Scotland Alex Salmond, Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, Prime Minister and Conservative Party leader David Cameron, and leaders of the other main political parties.

The visit comes at a time when incidents of sexual abuse of children by Catholic priests have received prominent media attention: during the visit, Pope Benedict apologised for that and met five abuse victims. more here

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Eurovision Song Contest 2010

First of all, I would like to greet Lena Meyer-Landrut for winning this prestigious song contest held in Oslo, Norway last May 29, 2010, the Eurovision Song Contest 2010. Congratulations also to all German people for finally winning it again after 28 years. Below are some information about this event.

"The Eurovision Song Contest 2010 was the 55th annual Eurovision Song Contest, broadcast from the Telenor Arena in Bærum, a suburb of Oslo, Norway. It was the third time Norway has hosted the contest, having previously done so in 1986 and 1996. The 2010 winner was Germany with Lena singing "Satellite" written by American Julie Frost and Dane John Gordon. Second place went to Turkey, third to Romania, fourth to Denmark, and fifth to Azerbaijan.

The semi-finals took place on 25 and 27 May 2010 and the final took place on 29 May 2010. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) announced that the voting system used in the semi-finals would change from previous years to balance jury voting with televoting. A return of accompaniment by orchestra was also proposed but did not happen.

Thirty-nine countries had taken part in the contest, with Georgia returning to the contest and Andorra, the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Montenegro withdrawing. Lithuania originally announced its withdrawal from the competition, but was later among the 39 participants confirmed by the EBU. A recent global financial crisis affected how the event was run. NRK sold its rights to 2010 FIFA World Cup to a rival broadcaster to finance its hosting of the Eurovision Song Contest 2010. With 246 points, Germany was named the winner of the contest. It was their second win after 28 years and the first time since 1997 that a Big 4 country won the contest." read more here

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Iceland volcano sends new tremors, lower ash cloud

REYKJAVIK (Reuters) – The erupting volcano in Iceland sent new tremors on Monday, but the ash plume which has caused air traffic chaos across Europe has dropped to a height of about 2 km (1.2 miles), the Meteorological Office said.

Ash production had fallen and Iceland's coast guard and scientists prepared to fly over the volcano in search of signs its crater was now producing lava, which could indicate the nature of the eruption was changing.

"The situation is definitely better than it was particularly on Saturday, which was a difficult day for us due to heavy ash fall just south of the volcano," said Urdur Gudmundsdottir, a spokeswoman at the foreign ministry.

The appearance of lava could suggest the eruption was moving into a less explosive phase, possibly a good sign for thousands of travelers who have been stranded at airport across Europe for the past five days because countries have closed their airspace over safety fears.
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EU to resume limited air traffic Tuesday

BRUSSELS – European officials carved up the sky Monday, creating three zones to more quickly break the flight deadlock caused by volcanic ash flowing from Iceland over Europe. Many more flights will be able to take off on Tuesday, the bloc said.

European countries can resume airline traffic in designated "caution zones" where the threat of ash is considered less dangerous, French officials said after a meeting of the bloc's 27 transport ministers.

Under the accord, one area — defined by the European air traffic control agency Eurocontrol — will remain entirely off limits to flights. Another area will be open to all flights and a third area will be a caution zone in which some flights will be allowed.

Jean-Louis Borloo, the No. 2 French Cabinet official, said flights in the caution zone will be "very secure" with many tests to make sure jet engines are not damaged by ash.

EU Transport Commissioner Siim Kallas said after a videoconference with EU transport ministers and industry officials that "the decision increases air space available to air traffic. This is the final outcome."
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Polish President, Lech Kaczynski Died in Russia Jet Crash

This news had been aired couple of times over a German radio as we were on our way to Neumarkt, Bavaria, Germany until we drove back home. Polish President, his wife and other Polish leaders were dead in Russia jet crash. below are the excerpts of the news.

Polish leader, 96 others dead in Russia jet crash

MOSCOW – Polish President Lech Kaczynski and some of the country's highest military and civilian leaders died on Saturday when the presidential plane crashed as it came in for a landing in thick fog in western Russia, killing 97, officials said.

Russian and Polish officials said there were no survivors on the 26-year-old Tupolev, which was taking the president, his wife and staff to events marking the 70th anniversary of the massacre in Katyn forest of thousands of Polish officers by Soviet secret police.

The crash devastated the upper echelons of Poland's political and military establishments. On board were the army chief of staff, national bank president, deputy foreign minister, army chaplain, head of the National Security Office, deputy parliament speaker, civil rights commissioner and at least two presidential aides and three lawmakers, the Polish foreign ministry said. continue reading here

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