JPMorgan appoints new consumer bank head

(Reuters) – JPMorgan Chase said it has appointed Barry Sommers as chief executive of its consumer bank, which includes its wealth management unit. Visa Inc had earlier announced that JPMorgan’s current consumer banking head, Ryan McInerney, had been appointed as president of Visa. McInerney succeeds John Partridge, whose term as president of Visa ended on March 31. McInerney will receive an annual salary of $750,000, Visa said in a regulatory filing. (Reporting by Tanya Agrawal in Bangalore; Editing by Robin Paxton)

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France's Hollande says will protect interests in Niger

PARIS (Reuters) – France will do everything to protect its interests in Niger after an attack on a uranium plant run by nuclear reactor maker Areva near the northern town of Arlit earlier on Thursday, French President Francois Hollande said. “We will have the same will to co-operate (with Niger) to fight against terrorism and will also protect our interests,” he told reporters. “Everybody should know that we will let nothing pass and support Niger’s authorities to end the hostage taking and annihilate the group that carried out these attacks. …

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Ally of Kosovo PM among five arrested for war crimes

Kosovo's Prime Minister Hashim Thaci arrives at NATO headquarters after a meeting in BrusselsPRISTINA (Reuters) – A close wartime ally of Kosovo's prime minister was among five people arrested by European Union police on Thursday on suspicion of war crimes during a 1998-99 insurgency against Serbian forces. The EU police and justice mission in Kosovo, EULEX, did not release the names of those arrested, but a lawyer for Sami Lushtaku, mayor of the town of Skenderaj, said his client was among them and would appear in court on Friday. …

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Obama's Forever War Doesn't End Today

Obama's Forever War Doesn't End TodayPresident Obama will say he sees a day when the War on Terror comes to an end in a much anticipated speech at the National Defense University on Thursday. That day is not today. Control over drone strikes will move from the CIA to the military, The New York Times' Charlie Savage and Peter Baker report. The transition is expected to take six months, and Obama might not address it explicitly, because the CIA program is classified. …

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Gunmen kill seven Iraqi soldiers in worsening conflict

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Seven Iraqi soldiers were killed in clashes with gunmen on Thursday, police and hospital sources said, as fears mount that Iraq might slide back into bloody sectarian strife. Ten years after the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein, Sunni, Shi’ite and ethnic Kurdish factions have yet to find a stable power-sharing deal and security is deteriorating. More than 300 people have been killed in violence over the past week. More than 700 died in April, according to the United Nations, the highest monthly toll in almost five years. …

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