Egypt recalls envoy to Israel after Gaza strike

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt has recalled its ambassador to Israel after an Israeli airstrike killed the military commander of Gaza‘s ruling Hamas.In a statement read on state TV late Wednesday, spokesman Yasser Ali said that President Mohammed Morsi recalled the ambassador and asked the Arab League‘s Secretary General to convene an emergency ministerial meeting...

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Facebook jumps on biggest lock-up expiration day

NEW YORK (AP) — Facebook‘s stock is up more than 7 percent despite expectations that it would fall because more than 850 million additional shares in the company are being freed up for sale.Shares of Facebook Inc. are up $ 1.48, or 7.5 percent, at $ 21.34. Facebook went public in May at $ 38 in a much-hyped initial public offering of stock that turned...

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Clapton platinum watch nets $3.6 million at auction

GENEVA (Reuters) – An Asian collector bought a platinum chronograph Patek Philippe wristwatch owned by British rock guitarist Eric Clapton for 3.44 million Swiss francs ($ 3.63 million) at auction on Monday, Christie’s said.The “ultra-rare” reference 2499/100 by the Swiss luxury watchmaker, one of only two cased in platinum, was acquired by Clapton some...

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EU approves Bristol-Astra diabetes drug after U.S. rejection

(Reuters) – European regulators have approved the first in a new class of diabetes medicines that work independently of insulin to control blood sugar, the drug’s developers Bristol-Myers Squibb Co and AstraZeneca Plc said on Wednesday.The approval of Forxiga by the European Commission stands in stark contrast to the rejection of the drug in January by...

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Obama warns GOP to lay off Rice attacks

President Barack Obama speaks at his first news conference since his reelection. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)President Barack Obama bluntly told John McCain and other Republicans to lay off their attacks against U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice over the Benghazi assault, telling lawmakers that if they go after her "then you have a problem with me." And Obama, speaking at his first post-election press conference,...

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Obama holds first reelection press conference

President Barack Obama speaks at his first news conference since his reelection. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)President Barack Obama bluntly told John McCain and other Republicans to lay off their attacks against U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice over the Benghazi assault, telling lawmakers that if they go after her "then you have a problem with me." And Obama, speaking at his first post-election press conference,...

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Beating tax cheats key to Italy’s recovery plan

ROME (AP) — Good plumbers may be worth their weight in gold, but when one was spotted zipping around in a bright red Ferrari, Italian tax police were fast on his trail.Stamping out entrenched tax evasion is crucial to Premier Mario Monti‘s quest to keep Italy from succumbing to the European debt crisis, and it is critical to fellow eurozone members in...

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Wakeman reworks rock epic Journey to Centre of Earth

LONDON (Reuters) – The story behind the upcoming re-issue of Rick Wakeman‘s 1974 concept album “Journey to the Center of the Earth” sounds almost as unlikely as the Jules Verne tale that inspired it.Progressive rock veteran Wakeman had presumed the original orchestration to his chart-topping disc was lost for good when his record company MAM, where the...

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Scientists map domestic pig’s genome

LONDON (Reuters) – Scientists have mapped the genome of the domestic pig in a project that could enhance the animal’s use in the testing of drugs for human disease.A study, published in science journal Nature, identified genes that could be linked with illnesses suffered by farmed pigs, providing a reference tool for selective breeding to increase their...

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When Facebook insiders, employees can sell stock

On Wednesday, additional Facebook stock became eligible for sale for the first time. It follows the expiration of similar lock-up periods in August and October. Other shares will become eligible for sale in the coming months.Up to 1.56 billion more shares could flood the stock market — nearly four times the 421 million shares that had been trading since...

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