International Headlines

Date: Sat, 29 May 2010 20:02:06 -0400
>TOP STORIES as of 0800 HKT -- 30 May, 2010

> 'TOP KILL' HAS FAILED, BP SAYS
The "top kill" attempt to stop the flow of oil from a ruptured
well in the Gulf of Mexico has failed, BP's chief operating
officer said.

> NEW UK MINISTER QUITS AMID SCANDAL
The Cabinet minister responsible for slashing Britain's
crippling deficit has admitted using taxpayers' money to rent
rooms from his male partner, as the expenses scandal came back
to haunt the new coalition government.

> 'EASY RIDER' ACTOR DENNIS HOPPER DIES
Dennis Hopper, the one-time Hollywood enfant terrible who
portrayed such indelible characters as "Easy Rider's" biker
Billy, "Blue Velvet's" huffing villain Frank Booth and
"Hoosiers' " forlorn Shooter Flatch, died of prostate cancer
Saturday morning at his home in Venice, California, his wife
said. He was 74.

> N. KOREA: SOUTH FABRICATED EVIDENCE
A North Korean official has questioned South Korea's credibility
for its rhetoric and actions over the sinking of a South Korean
warship in March, state-run media in North Korea reported
Saturday.

> HUNT FOR JAMAICAN 'DRUG KINGPIN' TO RESUME
Security forces in Jamaica will renew a push to arrest an
accused drug lord at the center of violence that has left 76
people dead, a senior police official says.

> 2 MALAWI GAYS SPARED 14-YEAR SENTENCE
The president of Malawi has pardoned two gay men who were
sentenced to 14 years in prison this month for gross indecency
and unnatural acts, the country's solicitor general, Anthony
Kamanga, said Saturday.

> MISSING WOMEN COPS FIND 'REMAINS'
Police in England recovered what they believe to be human
remains Saturday near the spot where they recently found the
body of Suzanne Blamires, who was reported missing this week.

> ROBBERS DOPE IRAQ BANKERS, STEAL $5.5M
Robbers stole $5.5 million from an Iraqi state bank after giving
guards tea laced with a sleeping drug, the Interior Ministry
said.

BUSINESS
~~~~~~~~~~~

> SECOND BA STRIKE LOOMS AS TALKS FAIL
A second five-day strike by British Airways cabin crew members
was set to start Sunday after talks between the union and the
airline failed, mediators said.

> BP'S 'ENVIRONMENTAL CATASTROPHE'
BP resumed pumping heavyweight drilling mud in its attempt to
cap a breached oil well in what the company's top executive
admitted as an "environmental catastrophe."l

> FITCH SLASHES SPAIN'S CREDIT RATING
Fitch downgraded Spain's sovereign debt to a lower investment
grade Friday, adding to continued concerns about European
contagion.