Six In The Morning

Senior al-Qaida leader targeted in US drone strike that killed 15 in Pakistan

　

By Robert Windrem NBC News
A Predator attack over the weekend targeted Abu Yahya al-Libi, a leading al-Qaida operative who was viewed as one of five candidates to succeed Osama bin Laden as leader of the terrorist group when he was killed last year. U.S. officials confirm that he was the target of the Sunday attacks and say they are awaiting word on his status. In one of three strikes over the weekend, a U.S. drone struck a militant compound early Monday morning in North Waziristan, part of Pakistan’s northwestern tribal area. Pakistan security reports indicated the pre-dawn strike killed 15 insurgents, but. U.S. officials said the number of dead was “exaggerated.”

Germany baulks at Spain's plan for for bailout of banks
Angela Merkel at odds with Mariano Rajoy as Madrid looks to secure lifeline for its lenders

, Alasdair Fotheringham Tuesday 05 June 2012
The travails of the Spanish banking system have opened up a rift at the heart of Europe, with growing resistance in Berlin to Madrid's attempts to secure a lifeline for its beleaguered lenders. The Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy is believed to be arguing for a direct rescue for the country's troubled banks without appealing for a national bailout. The latter would burden Spain with the kind of strict budgetary conditions that have provoked a popular backlash in Greece.

Libyan government retakes airport from disgruntled militia
Militiamen surrounded flights on the tarmac, forcing planes to divert before the government resumed control.

By Rami al-Shaheibi, The Associated Press
Libya's government has retaken control of the country's main airport from disgruntled militiamen who stormed the Tripoli site with heavy machine guns and armored vehicles on Monday, Libya's interim leader said. In an interview with the Arabic satellite channel Al-Jazeera, the head of the country's National Transitional Council, Mustafa Abdul-Jalil, said the airport was attacked and held for several hours because it is "a strategic facility," vowing it would not fall out of government control again. "The attack on the airport is dangerous, but we dealt with it as a government, military and revolutionaries with intelligence," he said.

Last chance to see Venus transit before 2117
Venus to make rare pass between Earth and sun, with scientists using opportunity to hone search for habitable planets.

Last Modified: 05 Jun 2012 06:47
Planet Venus is set to pass directly between the sun and Earth, a transit that will occur next in 2117. Transits of Venus happen in pairs eight years apart, with more than a century between cycles. During the pass, Venus appears as a small, dark round spot moving across the face of the sun, like a bug on a dinner plate. Tuesday's transit, which bookends a 2004-2012 pair, begins at 22:09 GMT and lasts for six hours and 40 minutes. Times can vary by seven minutes depending on the location of the observer. Skywatchers on seven continents, including Antarctica, will be able to see all or part of the Venus transit, which should only be observed with telescopes outfitted with solar filters to protect the eyes.

The 'love commandos' protecting young Indian couples
In India, "love" is still considered by many to be a dirty word with most marriages arranged by parents along religious or caste lines

By Anu Anand BBC, New Delhi
Rajveer Singh is a handsome young man of 23. He has large, earnest eyes and hair that falls over his forehead. He is well-built, quiet, thoughtful. When Rajveer was 12, a new family moved into the house across the narrow alley. The first time he saw Madhuri, who was then 14, he says he fell in love. "I thought to myself 'this is the girl I want to marry'. She was mischievous, she had a beautiful smile, and I knew she would look after me." Madhuri, a petite, bright-eyed woman with a winning smile, says she felt the same. Over the years, as Rajveer and Madhuri went to school together and shared their best hopes and worst fears, they fell utterly in love.

U.N. struggles for answers as Syrian truce falls apart


By Isolde Raftery, msnbc.com
Following another bloody weekend in Syria, rebels said they would no longer follow a truce brokered by the United Nations, saying President Bashar al-Assad wasn’t adhering to his end of the agreement, Reuters reported. Over the weekend, 80 Syrian troops were killed in clashes with Free Syrian Army fighters, the BBC reported, citing a UK-based activist group. Kofi Annan, the former secretary general of the U.N., was assigned to mediate the situation and has urged major powers to support his peace plan, calling it “the only option on the table.”