Putin reappears after 10-day absence

Putin reappears after 10-day absence

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia

Looking fit and joking about all the fuss over his unexplained 10-day absence from public view, President Vladimir Putin reappeared Monday to quell the swirling speculation about the state of his health and his hold on power.

“It would be dull without gossip,” Putin said with a smile during a meeting with Kyrgyzstan’s president, Almazbek Atambayev, at St. Petersburg’s ornate Konstantin Palace.

Atambayev had just said that he wanted to put an end to the unpleasant gossip, describing how Putin had driven him around the palace’s park and thus “not only walks, but speeds around.”

2 sentenced in try to help terrorists

RIVERSIDE, Calif.

Two Southern California men who were recruited in a scheme to send them to Afghanistan to kill U.S. troops were sentenced Monday to federal prison for conspiring to provide material support to terrorists.

Miguel Alejandro Santana Vidriales, 24, of Upland, received a 10-year sentence, and Arifeen David Gojali, 24, of Riverside, got five years, the Riverside Press-Enterprise reported. Each also will have a decade of supervised release.

Both had pleaded guilty to the conspiracy charges and cooperated with prosecutors.

Netanyahu: No Palestinian state

JERUSALEM

In a frenzied last day of campaigning, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday ruled out the establishment of a Palestinian state and vowed to keep building east Jerusalem settlements as he appealed to hard-line voters on the eve of Israel’s closely contested general election.

The moderate opposition, meanwhile, announced a dramatic last-minute machination of its own, removing one of its two joint candidates for prime minister.

Court reverses century-old ruling denying law license

SAN FRANCISCO

The California Supreme Court righted what it called a “grievous wrong” Monday, posthumously granting a law license to a Chinese immigrant whose application 125 years ago was denied solely because of his race.

In granting the license to Hong Yen Chang, the court recounted the “sordid chapter” in California history that saw the mistreatment of Chinese immigrants in the late 19th century.

Chang died in Berkeley in 1926 after a successful career in banking. He was never licensed as a lawyer in California.

UN: 24 confirmed dead in cyclone

AUCKLAND, New Zealand

Relief workers tried desperately today to reach Vanuatu’s remote outer islands that were smashed by a monstrous cyclone, as the United Nations reported that 24 people were confirmed dead and 3,300 displaced by the storm that tore through the South Pacific archipelago.

GOP weighs increase in military funds

WASHINGTON

House Republicans are considering adding tens of billions of dollars to President Barack Obama’s request for overseas military operations in an effort to get around tight limits on Pentagon spending. The move comes as Republicans are set to unveil their latest budget plan.

Obama requested $51 billion for Pentagon operations in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere, but GOP aides said Monday party leaders are weighing figures above $90 billion.

Associated Press