International Headlines

Date: Wed, 26 May 2010 20:02:04 -0400
>TOP STORIES as of 0800 HKT -- 27 May, 2010

> BP CEO: 24 HOURS BEFORE 'TOP KILL' VERDICT
BP Chief Executive Officer Tony Hayward said it will be 24 hours
before authorities will know whether the "top kill" effort to
plug the runaway oil leak in the Gulf is working.

> CLINTON TO S. KOREA: 'WE STAND WITH YOU'
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton pledges Washington's
support for South Korea and calls on North Korea to end
belligerent actions amid high tensions.

> U.K. OFFERS NUCLEAR WEAPONS COUNT
Britain has a total nuclear arsenal of fewer than 225 weapons,
with 160 currently operational, Foreign Secretary William Hague
said Wednesday.

> DOZENS DEAD IN JAMAICA VIOLENCE
Jamaica's prime minister Wednesday rejected allegations that he
was "a known criminal affiliate" of a suspected drug lord,
calling them "libellous," "scurrilous" and "malicious."

> BOMBING TARGETS DANCE SHOW IN RUSSIA
A bombing outside a planned performance by a dance company from the
restive Russian republic of Chechnya left three women dead and wounded
several other people Wednesday evening, prosecutors said.

> GAY MALAWI COUPLE SEPARATED IN PRISON
One of two gay men jailed in Malawi after they got engaged has
been transferred to another prison, a human rights campaigner
and gay rights activist said Wednesday.

> KUZNETSOVA SURVIVES FRENCH OPEN SCARE
Defending women's champion Svetlana Kuznetsova survived four
match points before scraping into the third round of the French
Open on a rain-interrupted fourth day at Roland Garros.

> FERGIE AT BOOK SHOW DAYS AFTER SCANDAL
Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, is scheduled to appear at a
book convention in New York City on Wednesday, undeterred by a
scandal that she allegedly offered to sell access to her former
husband, Britain's Prince Andrew.

BUSINESS
~~~~~~~~~~~
> Q&A: HOW WILL EUROPE'S BANK LEVY WORK?
The European Commission outlines proposals for a number of
national emergency funds designed to take the pressure off
taxpayers in the event of any future bank failures. But how will
the scheme work?

> BRUSSELS PROPOSES EU BANK LEVY
Brussels has formally unveiled its proposal for EU countries to
form national funds to insure against future bank failures.

> TIMES UNVEILS NEW 'PAID' WEB SITE
Rupert Murdoch's venerable Times and Sunday Times newspapers
launched their new-look Web sites Wednesday, as they prepare to
start charging users for their content -- a move which could
determine the future course of the ailing newspaper industry.