BEIRUT (Reuters) - At least two people were killed in Beirut in heavy clashes early on Monday between rival Sunni Muslim gunmen, the latest violence fuelled by tensions over the uprising in neighboring Syria. Gunmen firing rocket-propelled grenades and machineguns clashed in the Lebanese capital's Tariq al-Jadideh district in some of the fiercest battles since sectarian fighting four years ago brought Lebanon back to the brink of civil war. The violence followed the killing of two members of a political alliance opposed to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Sunday in the north of Lebanon. ...

SHANGHAI/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Chinese Internet entrepreneur Jack Ma is buying back up to half of a 40 percent stake in his Alibaba Group from Yahoo Inc for $7.1 billion, in a deal that moves the Chinese e-commerce leader closer to a public listing. Under the agreement, Yahoo will sell half its stake in Alibaba for at least $6.3 billion in cash and up to $800 million in new Alibaba preferred stock. ...

SHANGHAI/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Chinese Internet entrepreneur Jack Ma is buying back up to half of a 40 percent stake in his Alibaba Group from Yahoo Inc for $7.1 billion, in a deal that moves the Chinese e-commerce leader closer to a public listing. Under the agreement, Yahoo will sell half its stake in Alibaba for at least $6.3 billion in cash and up to $800 million in new Alibaba preferred stock. ...

Struggling Internet company Yahoo Inc. has secured a lifeline after agreeing to sell half of its prized stake in Chinese e-commerce group Alibaba for about $7.1 billion, with most of the cash going to shareholders.

Skywatchers from Mount Fuji to the Grand Canyon enjoyed a treat: the moon nearly blotting out the sun to create a dramatic "ring of fire" over a narrow strip of eastern Asia and the western United States.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin will unveil a government dominated by loyalists on Monday, leaving Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev limited scope to pursue his reform agenda and entrenching the Kremlin's grip over the economy's commanding heights. Medvedev, 46, named premier after Putin returned to the Kremlin on May 7, has pledged to launch pro-growth policies and a privatisation drive to wean Russia's $1.7 billion economy off its dependence on oil. ...

Lucio Adan Nelson dozed on a riverboat ferrying him home from a visit with his mother when helicopters appeared overhead and started shooting. He and about a dozen other passengers traveling in the middle of the night jumped into the water for cover.

SHANGHAI/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Chinese Internet entrepreneur Jack Ma is buying back up to half of a 40 percent stake in his Alibaba Group from Yahoo Inc for $7.1 billion, in a deal that moves the Chinese e-commerce leader closer to a public listing. Under the agreement, Yahoo will sell half of its stake in Alibaba for at least $6.3 billion in cash and up to $800 million in new Alibaba preferred stock. ...

TOKYO (Reuters) - Markets recovered some ground on Monday on value hunting after last week's heavy losses, but investors remained wary over the euro zone despite world leaders calling for Greece to stay in the monetary union and for Europe to balance austerity with growth. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.5 percent, buoyed by its technology sector which by far outperformed its peers with a 1.3 percent gain. Investors scooped cheapened blue chips, helping to lift tech-heavy Korean equity market above a key chart level. ...

Lebanese security officials say overnight clashes in Beirut between Sunni groups that support and oppose the regime in Damascus have killed one person and wounded 10.

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Two people were killed and 18 were wounded in overnight clashes in Beirut, Lebanon's National News Agency said on Monday, the latest bloodshed fuelled by tensions over the uprising in neighboring Syria. Fighters firing rocket-propelled grenades and machine guns clashed for most of the night in the Tariq al-Jadideh district of the Lebanese capital. The violence followed the killing by Lebanese army soldiers in the north of the country on Sunday of two members of a political party opposed to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. ...

FRANKFURT, Germany (Reuters) - The head of General Motors unit Opel will face workers' concerns on Monday over reported plans to shut one of its four German plants as the automaker pulls production of the Astra, its best-selling model, from the country. Opel's Chief Executive Karl-Friedrich Stracke is due to address workers at Germany's Bochum plant, which a source close to negotiations has said is the most likely to be shut. ...

ATHENS (Reuters) - The charismatic Greek leftist who could determine the fate of the euro begins a tour of European capitals on Monday carrying a single message: it's time to talk. In an interview on the eve of his first visit abroad since his surprise rise in a May 6 election, Alexis Tsipras veered occasionally into the combative rhetoric that has seduced disaffected Greek youth and alarmed Brussels and Berlin. But he also stressed repeatedly that he wants negotiations to keep Greece in the euro. ...

ATHENS (Reuters) - The charismatic Greek leftist who could determine the fate of the euro begins a tour of European capitals on Monday carrying a single message: it's time to talk. In an interview on the eve of his first visit abroad since his surprise rise in a May 6 election, Alexis Tsipras veered occasionally into the combative rhetoric that has seduced disaffected Greek youth and alarmed Brussels and Berlin. But he also stressed repeatedly that he wants negotiations to keep Greece in the euro. ...

Santo Domingo (Reuters) - Early results from presidential elections in the Dominican Republic show ruling party candidate Danilo Medina headed for victory 12 years after he lost in a landslide to opposition candidate Hipolito Mejia. With almost 75 percent of votes counted, Medina and the ruling Dominican Liberation Party (PLD) held a 4 percentage point lead (51 percent - 47 percent) over Mejia, the candidate for the opposition Dominican Revolutionary Party (PRD), according to official election results. ...

Santo Domingo (Reuters) - Early results from presidential elections in the Dominican Republic show ruling party candidate Danilo Medina headed for victory 12 years after he lost in a landslide to opposition candidate Hipolito Mejia. With almost 75 percent of votes counted, Medina and the ruling Dominican Liberation Party (PLD) held a 4 percentage point lead (51 percent - 47 percent) over Mejia, the candidate for the opposition Dominican Revolutionary Party (PRD), according to official election results. ...

Millions of early risers in Asia turned their attention skyward to view a rare "ring of fire" eclipse as it crossed their skies Monday morning.

A governing party official appeared headed for a first-round win in the Dominican Republic's presidential election as supporters of his opponent complained of rampant vote-buying and other forms of fraud.

SHANGHAI/BEIJING (Reuters) - One of China's most conspicuously reform-minded leaders has stepped back into the spotlight after the nation's biggest political convulsion in a generation, positioning himself to gain from the fall of populist politician Bo Xilai. Wang Yang, leader of Guangdong province and well known for his deft handling of recent civil unrest there, is the first of three provincial-level party bosses who stand to benefit after a murder scandal snuffed out Bo's career last month. ...

SHANGHAI/BEIJING (Reuters) - One of China's most conspicuously reform-minded leaders has stepped back into the spotlight after the nation's biggest political convulsion in a generation, positioning himself to gain from the fall of populist politician Bo Xilai. Wang Yang, leader of Guangdong province and well known for his deft handling of recent civil unrest there, is the first of three provincial-level party bosses who stand to benefit after a murder scandal snuffed out Bo's career last month. ...

Twenty-two states and the District of Columbia are backing Montana in its fight to prevent the U.S. Supreme Court's 2010 Citizens United decision from being used to strike down state laws restricting corporate campaign spending.

Twenty-two states and the District of Columbia are backing Montana in its fight to prevent the U.S. Supreme Court's 2010 Citizens United decision from being used to strike down state laws restricting corporate campaign spending.

Twenty-two states and the District of Columbia are backing Montana in its fight to prevent the U.S. Supreme Court's 2010 Citizens United decision from being used to strike down state laws restricting corporate campaign spending.

More than 2,000 people who were falsely convicted of serious crimes have been exonerated in the United States in the past 23 years, according to a new archive compiled at two universities.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Barely a day went by at the insider-trading trial of multimillionaire hedge-fund founder Raj Rajaratnam a year ago without mention of Rajat Gupta, a boldface name in business and charity circles. On Monday in the same federal court in New York, it will be Gupta's turn to go on trial. The former Goldman Sachs Group Inc and Procter & Gamble board member is accused of leaking stock secrets to Rajaratnam, his erstwhile friend and business associate who was convicted and is now in prison. ...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Restore Our Future, an outside "Super PAC" backing Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney, raised $3.9 million in April, less than half of its haul in March but still far ahead of its Democratic counterpart working to re-elect President Barack Obama. The pro-Romney "super" political action committee Restore Our Future had $8.2 million in cash on hand at the end of the latest reporting period, filings with the Federal Election Commission showed on Sunday. The pro-Obama group, Priorities USA Action, raised $1.6 million last month and had $4. ...

On paper at least, European leaders agree: They need stronger growth measures to help their economies expand out of their 2½-year-old government debt crisis. Figuring out exactly what those new steps might be will be the hard part.