Reuters: Top Global and Breaking News

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SMOLENSK, Russia (Reuters) - The first ladies of Poland and Russia said the plane crash that killed the Polish president and 95 others in April brought the nations closer together, during a ceremony Sunday at the accident site.

Russian and Polish first ladies remember air crash

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PYONGYANG (Reuters) - North Korea's leader-in-waiting, the youngest son of ailing ruler Kim Jong-il, took center stage during a big military parade on Sunday, making his first national appearance in the secretive state.

North Korea's heir debuts at giant military parade

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - More than two-thirds of U.S. state attorneys general plan this week to launch a joint probe into charges some banks used fraudulent paperwork to kick struggling borrowers out of their homes, a source familiar with the effort told Reuters on Sunday.

Pressure intensifies on mortgage lenders

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Twenty-nine countries show alarming levels of hunger and more than a billion people were hungry in 2009, according to a new report on global hunger.

29 countries' hunger levels "alarming": report

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CORAL GABLES, Florida (Reuters) - President Barack Obama accused Republicans on Monday of peddling "snake oil" in their campaigns to gain power in Congress on November 2 and urged Democrats to get motivated about the elections.

Obama accuses Republicans of peddling "snake oil"

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NEW YORK (Reuters) - Large Wall Street banks are unlikely to accelerate bonus payouts, even if doling out bonuses in December would cut the tax bills of employees, compensation experts said.

Not many early bonuses for Wall Street banks: experts

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OSLO (Reuters) - China broadened its retaliation against Norway on Tuesday for the selection of a Chinese dissident for the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize, cancelling a second cabinet-level meeting and a Norwegian cultural event in China.

China steps up retaliation against Norway for Nobel

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LONDON (Reuters) - The Gulf of Mexico oil spill will push up costs and reduce the number of offshore oil and gas operators in U.S. waters for a long time to come, oil company executives told an industry conference on Tuesday.

Higher costs, risk lasting legacy of Gulf spill

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KABUL (Reuters) - Cash from the U.S. military and international donors destined for construction and welfare projects in restive parts of Afghanistan is ending up in the hands of insurgents, a contractor and village elders said.

Afghan firms "pay off Taliban with foreign cash"

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SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Apple Inc's shares cruised past $300 for the first time on Wednesday, as investors anticipated another strong earnings report from the iPhone maker next week.

Apple stock breaks $300 for first time