Elsewhere wire

The government on Thursday recommended the removal of four hydroelectric dams on the Klamath River in Oregon and California to aid native salmon runs and help resolve a decades-long struggle over allocation of scarce water resources.

The Interior Department proposal, which comes as the largest dam removal project in U.S. history is nearing completion in Washington state, concerns a system of dams that straddle the Oregon-California border.

The United States said it would soon send a missile defense system to Guam to defend it from North Korea, as the U.S. military adjusts to what Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel called a "real and clear danger" from Pyongyang.

Hours later, South Korea's Yonhap news agency said North Korea had moved what appeared to be a mid-range Musudan missile to its east coast. It was not clear if the North planned to fire the rocket or was just putting it on display as a show of force, one South Korean government source was quoted as saying.

The rebel leader who seized power in Central African Republic and proclaimed himself president accepted on Thursday a call by regional leaders to speed up a transition to democracy, but could stay in office, his information minister said.

Michel Djotodia led thousands of rebel fighters of the Seleka coalition into the riverside capital of the mineral-rich country on March 24, toppling President Francois Bozize.

The humanitarian situation in Syria is worsening rapidly with some areas a landscape of "devastation and destruction", the Red Cross said on Thursday after a month which activists said was the bloodiest yet in the conflict.

About 70,000 people have been killed and millions displaced during the two-year-old uprising, the United Nations says. Civilians have been cut off from water, electricity and life-saving medical supplies, especially in rebel-held areas targeted by air strikes and ballistic missiles.

Ils viennent du futur
Ils viennent du passé
Les morlocks au regard dur
Les coquillards de la vénalité
C'est la panique de la pauvreté
Parfois en bandes organisées
Ils peuvent violer ou tuer
Souvent sous l'emprise de l'alcool
Rampement de violence qui décolle
Leurs espérances sont molles
A leurs semelles, une véritable colle
L'exacerbation de la concupiscence
Querellés sont tous leurs sens
Comme le riche luxurieux
Aux plaisirs si vaniteux
Morlocks et coquillards

The nightclub dancer at the center of former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi's sex trial staged a dramatic protest outside the court on Thursday, alleging that she had been unfairly pressured as part of a campaign against Berlusconi.

Karima El Mahroug's emotional and at times contradictory statement in defense of Berlusconi follows a protest by parliamentarians from his party outside the court last month as the media magnate tries to have the trial moved away from Milan.

Florence mayor Matteo Renzi launched a clear challenge to Italian center-left leader Pier Luigi Bersani on Thursday, calling for a government coalition with former premier Silvio Berlusconi or new elections in June.

Bersani won a majority in the lower house but not the Senate in February elections, leaving his center-left group unable to govern alone. He failed last week in efforts to forge a viable majority in parliament after his overtures to the anti-establishment 5-Star Movement were rebuffed.

The Israeli military says Gaza militants have fired rockets at the south of the country a day after Israel warned of an escalation.

Rutgers University fired the head of its men's basketball team on Wednesday after the release of video showing him shoving players, hurling balls at their heads and berating them with homophobic slurs.

The video, which went viral on the Internet, prompted outrage and calls from players, fans and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie for the ousting of the coach, Mike Rice.

The governor said the dismissal was "the right and necessary action to take in light of the conduct displayed" at New Jersey's largest public university with 58,000 students.