International Headlines

Date: Sat, 14 Aug 2010 05:02:07 -0400
>TOP STORIES as of 0900 GMT -- 14 August, 2010

> FLOOD-HIT PAKISTAN CANCELS INDEPENDENCE DAY EVENTS
Pakistan canceled independence day celebrations Saturday as a
second wave of floods continued to put millions in peril, the
nation's prime minister said.

> OBAMA BACKS MOSQUE NEAR GROUND ZERO
U.S. President Obama threw his support behind a controversial
proposal to build an Islamic center and mosque near New York's
ground zero.

> U.S. TROOPS AID DESPITE TALIBAN RISK
More than 100 U.S. troops are on the ground in a volatile area
of Pakistan, helping that government deliver supplies and rescue
people from flood-ravaged areas, but a U.S. general said Friday
when it comes to fights with the Taliban, rescue teams have had
"none."

> UK MINISTRY OF DEFENCE TO GET 'LEANER'
Britain's military chiefs have been told to prepare for a
"leaner and less centralized" Ministry of Defence.

> RUSSIA MOVING AHEAD WITH IRAN REACTOR
Russia says it will start loading a nuclear reactor in Iran with
fuel next week despite calls from the U.S. to wait for assurance
that Iran is making energy, not weapons.

> 7.2 QUAKE HITS SOUTH OF MARIANAS
A 7.2-magnitude earthquake has struck south of the Mariana
Islands, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

> U.S. SENDING WILDFIRE HELP TO RUSSIA
The United States is sending aid to Russia to help battle the
wildfires there, the White House said Friday.

> DOCTORS OPERATE ON ZSA ZSA GABOR
Zsa Zsa Gabor underwent surgery for the removal of a blood clot
Friday night, a complication relating to her recent hip
replacement surgery, her publicist said.

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BUSINESS
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> EXPORTS DRIVE GERMAN GROWTH SPURT
A surprise surge in Germany's second quarter economic growth has
been put down to an increase in exports. But can the good times
in the typically pessimistic nation last?

> EAST INDIA CO. REBORN AS LUXURY BRAND
It was the world's first multinational company, a trading giant
during the colonial rule of the Indian subcontinent. This week,
The East India Company is being reborn as a luxury brand --
under Indian ownership.

> INDIA IMPOSES DEADLINE ON BLACKBERRY
India is expected to make a major decision Thursday regarding
BlackBerry, which is under serious scrutiny because the highly
encrypted messages in the device make it impossible for
intelligence agencies to monitor.