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12-year-old boy arraigned in sister's killing

(Reuters) - A 12-year-old boy accused of fatally stabbing his 8-year-old sister in their northern California home made a brief appearance on Wednesday in juvenile court, where he was presented with second-degree murder charges but entered no plea.
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OJ Simpson testifies in bid for new Vegas trial

O.J. Simpson, a former star athlete who once lived for the spotlight, was back on stage telling the grim story of the Las Vegas afternoon in 2007 that sent him to prison.
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Another 25 Policemen reportedly killed by new sect in Nigeria

Members of a deadly militia group were yesterday reported to have on Tuesday engaged Policemen in a fierce battle at the Alakyo community of Nasarawa State.
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Editorial: Nigeria spiralling out of control

President Goodluck Jonathan had to cut short his state visit to South Africa and abort the planned one to Namibia in order to return home in the wake of big security challenges in the country.
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Andy Murray 'could miss Roland Garros' after retiring in Rome

Andy Murray was forced to retire against Marcel Granollers at the Rome Masters and has admitted he "could miss the French Open".
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Nigeria

Some Nigerians richer than the nation – Clergyman

Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Okigwe South, Rt. Rev. David Onuoha, has expressed worry over what he termed “the serious threat corruption is posing to our corporate existence as a nation”.Rt. Rev. Onuoha made the lamentation in his address at the second session of the seventh synod of the diocese held at Saint Matthew’s Church, Umuezeala Nsu, Ehime Mbano local council area of Imo State.“It is no longer news that our country sets a new record on this every year and all efforts at reducing the incidences of this national embarrassment succeeded only in the breach”, the bishop lamented.He was particularly irked that the ever rising profile of corruption in the land means that the issue will remain in the public domain until a solution is found.“The issue is not these mind-boggling annual revelations. What should disturb us as a nation are the denials, the rebuttals and deliberate refusal to acknowledge an obvious fact”, Onuoha said.Continuing, the fiery Anglican cleric said: “What this clearly indicates is that this nation and her leaders are not in a hurry to fight this malaise. That we are in a society where funds meant for projects and services that will benefit all and make for national growth are brazenly stolen by a privileged few and still people from the same society appear to quarrel with views of massive corruption in Nigeria calls for a great concern”.

World

Thirteen killed, 10 police kidnapped in Iraq violence

(Reuters) - Suspected Sunni Muslimmilitants killed four state-backed Sunni fighters in Iraqon Saturday, security sources said, apparently viewing them as collaborators with the Shi'ite-led government of a nation plagued by sectarian hatred.Sunni-Shi'ite tensions in Iraq have been amplified by the conflict between mostly Sunni rebels and President Bashar al-Assad's Alawite-dominated forces in neighboring Syria.The four "Sahwa" militia fighters were killed in an attack on their headquarters on the outskirts of Garma, 9 km (six miles) east of Falluja, a city in the western province of Anbar.Gunmen also ambushed and kidnapped 10 Sunni policemen near Ramadi, the capital of Anbar, a Sunni heartland bordering Syria.There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks, but Sunni militant groups have been behind previous violence targeting security forces in a campaign to destabilize the Baghdad government, which they reject as illegitimate.When Sunni-Shi'ite bloodshed was at its height in 2006-07, Anbar was in the grip of al Qaeda's local affiliate, the Islamic State of Iraq, which has regained strength in recent months.Sahwa or "Awakening" fighters are Sunni tribesmen who helped U.S. troops subdue al Qaeda in 2006. They are now on the government payroll and are often targeted by Sunni militants.In other violence, tribesmen clashed with security forces and set four of their vehicles ablaze after a woman and three of her young children were killed in an army raid north of Ramadi.A car bomb parked near an entrance to the town of Latifiya, south of Baghdad, killed five people, police said.Minority Sunnis, embittered by Shi'ite dominance since the overthrow of Saddam Hussein by U.S.-led forces in 2003, have been staging street protests against Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki since December. A bloody government raid on a Sunni protest camp in Hawija last month ignited a surge of violence.Monthly death tolls are well below those of 2006-07, when they sometimes topped 3,000, but more than 700 were killed in April by a U.N. count, the highest figure in almost five years.At least 72 people died in attacks on Friday, 43 of them in two bombings outside a Sunni mosque in the city of Baquba.

Tennis

Nadal set to meet Federer in Rome final

Roger Federer will meet great rival Rafa Nadal in the Italian Open final after the Swiss held off a spirited challenge by unseeded Frenchman Benoit Paire on Saturday.The 7-6 6-4 scoreline suggested a routine victory for the world number three, but the 24-year-old Paire was a break up in the first set and held three mini breaks in the tiebreak before being let down by poor shot selection.The second set was more straightforward for Federer, into the Rome final for the third time and first since 2006, as he wrapped up victory in just under 90 minutes.Nadal had earlier beat Czech sixth seed Tomas Berdych6-2 6-4 with a dominant performance that he described as emotional after a long injury absence which saw him return to court in February after seven months off with a knee problem.The Spaniard has won six titles since returning, while Federer is yet to register a title in 2013."For me it's already a good tournament. He (Nadal) is the favourite but he's near the end of a long claycourt season, it may be my chance," Federer told reporters.Nadal, the sport's dominant claycourt player was at his aggressive best in dismantling the heavy hitting Berdych, breaking in the first and fifth games of a one-sided first set before clinching a decisive advantage in the ninth game of the second.Nadal wrapped it up when his opponent sent a backhand return long and then said he could not have hoped to be playing better after his lengthy layoff."I am feeling better physically," the 11-times grand slam winner said in an interview with Spanish television broadcaster Teledeporte."These are emotional moments for me as I think I have managed to turn around a situation in which after many months of doubts I am able to play at a level that I would not have dreamed of four months ago."