Tennis-Injured Monaco first seed to fall at Australian Open

MELBOURNE, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Argentine Juan Monaco was the first seed to be knocked out of the Australian Open on Monday, succumbing as much to injury as to Russian Andrey Kuznetsov in a 7-6 6-1 6-1 first round defeat.With all the seeds safely through to the second round as the shadows lengthened over show court two, the 28-year-old took lengthy injury time outs for treatment on his lower back and...

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Toronto mayor battles for job as court appeal wraps up

TORONTO (Reuters) - The ruling to remove an "honest man" such as Toronto Mayor Rob Ford from office would be draconian, the mayor's lawyer said on Monday as arguments concluded in the appeal of a case that has cast a pall of uncertainty over who will run Canada's most populous city.The controversial mayor was evicted from his post by an Ontario Superior Court judge two years into his term after being...

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African Union head wants NATO to help fight Mali rebels

OTTAWA (Reuters) - The head of the African Union, Benin President Boni Yayi, on Tuesday called for a global coalition that includes NATO to intervene against Islamist rebels in northern Mali."My understanding is that in reality when we talk of an international force it's not just (West African regional group) ECOWAS, it's not just the African Union, it's also other forces from outside the African...

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African Union chair to meet Harper as Canada mulls support for Mali

OTTAWA - The head of the African Union is set to visit Ottawa this week.Thomas Boni Yayi's meeting with Prime Minister Stephen Harper could bring a request for Canadian troops to be involved in an international mission in Mali.The United Nations Security Council backed a proposal in December to send an African-led force of 3,300 soldiers into the country.But the resolution also called for broader...

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Egypt appoints 10 new ministers, including finance chief, ahead of fresh talks with IMF

CAIRO - Egypt swore in 10 new ministers on Sunday in a Cabinet shake-up aimed at improving the government's handling of the country's ailing economy ahead of talks this week with the International Monetary Fund over a badly needed $4.8 billion loan.The reshuffle, which President Mohammed Morsi had promised in response to public anger over Egypt's economic malaise, affected two key ministries, the...

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Fighting Irish vs Crimson Tide: 2 storied programs try to live up to hype in BCS title game

MIAMI - Sometimes, the buildup to a game can overwhelm what actually happens on the field.Certainly, No. 1 Notre Dame and No. 2 Alabama would have to play nothing less than a classic to live up to all the hype for Monday night's BCS championship.Before either team stepped on the field in balmy South Florida, this was shaping up as one of the most anticipated games in years, a throwback to the era...

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Dakar mosque lit up for Christmas in Senegal

After prayers at the mosque, Ibrahim Lo is off to do some last-minute Christmas shopping. Soon he is eyeing the rows of dolls wrapped in plastic bags on a wooden table as he searches for gifts for his four children.A bouquet of inflatable Santa toys tied to a nearby tree bobs in the air at this outdoor market in the seaside capital as he makes his picks.It looks a lot like Christmas in Senegal, where...

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4 foreign sailors kidnapped off Nigeria coast

Gunmen attacked a supply tug boat off the coast of Nigeria's oil-rich southern delta, kidnapping foreign sailors, including Italians, in the latest attack in the West African region that is increasingly dangerous for shippers and oil companies, officials said Monday. The attack happened 40 nautical miles off the coast of Bayelsa state in the Niger Delta on Sunday night, as the gunmen stormed the moving...

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Zimbabweans brace for bleak holidays

 Zimbabweans are facing bleak holidays this year amid rising poverty, food and cash shortages and political uncertainty, with some describing it as the worst since the formation of the coalition government in the southern African nation.President Robert Mugabe, in a four-year-old coalition with former opposition leader Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, announced an extra public holiday Monday...

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South Africa: Mandela in hospital over Christmas

 South Africa's presidency says former leader Nelson Mandela will spend Christmas Day in hospital.The presidency says in a statement that Mandela's doctors confirmed the news on Monday. The anti-apartheid figure was admitted Dec. 8 to a hospital in Pretoria, the South African capital. He was diagnosed with a lung infection and had a procedure to remove gallstones; officials have said Mandela...

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South Africa: World watches Mandela's struggle

A chipped street mural in South Africa's Soweto township depicts stations in the life of Nelson Mandela, each matched by a portrait of the global icon as he advanced from robust youth to old age. Now this infirm giant of history faces a struggle with mortality, its duration unknown but its outcome certain.There may be no living figure so revered around the world as a symbol of sacrifice and reconciliation,...

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Exclusive: Pakistan's army chief makes Afghan peace "top priority"

WANA, Pakistan/ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan's powerful army chief has made reconciling warring factions in Afghanistan a top priority, military officials and Western diplomats say, the newest and clearest sign yet that Islamabad means business in promoting peace with the Taliban.General Ashfaq Kayani is backing dialogue partly due to fears that the end of the U.S. combat mission in Afghanistan in...

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