Beijing warns against Taiwan ties as Singapore tries to free troop carriers in Hong Kong
HONG KONG/SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Beijing on Friday warned countries against maintaining military ties with Taiwan, after Singaporean armored troop carriers were seized en route from the island that Beijing regards as a breakaway province.
Suicide truck bomb kills about 100 in Iraq, mostly Iranian pilgrims
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – A suicide truck bomb killed about 100 people, most of them Iranian Shi’ite pilgrims, at a petrol station in the city of Hilla 100 km (62 miles) south of Baghdad on Thursday, police and medical sources said.
China considers granting Philippines access to disputed shoal: adviser
BEIJING (Reuters) – China is considering a “wholesale” deal that will grant Philippine fishing vessels access to disputed Scarborough Shoal waters in the South China Sea, an influential Chinese academic and government adviser said on Friday, as relatio…
Six killed, dozens wounded by blasts in Afghan city
JALALABAD, Afghanistan (Reuters) – At least six people were killed and 27 wounded on Friday in a series of explosions across the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad, a local government official said.
Police hunt suspect after woman murdered in French retirement home
MONTPELLIER, France (Reuters) – French police are hunting for a man after finding a woman dead in a retirement home in southern France where some 60 Roman Catholic missionaries live, but they have ruled out any link to Islamist terrorism, a prosecutor …
Malaysia to summon Myanmar envoy on Rohingya crackdown as protests mount
KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) – Malaysia will summon Myanmar’s ambassador over the crackdown on Rohingya Muslims in northwestern Rakhine state, its foreign ministry said on Friday, as hundreds of protesters across Southeast Asia demonstrated against the escal…
Ex-Hong Kong governor Patten says independence call a ‘terrible mistake’
HONG KONG (Reuters) – A growing independence campaign in Hong Kong is a terrible mistake that undermines the Chinese-ruled city’s push for democracy and serves merely to provoke Beijing, Chris Patten, the last governor of the former British colony, sai…
Turkish warplanes strike Islamic State targets in Syria’s al-Bab: military
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkish warplanes carried out air strikes on the Syrian city of al-Bab held by Islamic State on Friday, the military said in a statement, after four Turkish soldiers were killed in the area over the past two days.
South Africa’s scandal-plagued Zuma to face ANC integrity panel
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – South African President Jacob Zuma will be questioned next week by the African National Congress’ (ANC) integrity commission following persistent allegations of corruption and poor election results, the party said on Friday.
Death toll in China power plant accident climbs to 74
BEIJING (Reuters) – Police took 13 people into custody as the death toll in the collapse of a platform under construction at a power plant in eastern China rose to 74, with two others injured, state media said on Friday.
