Zuma drops bid to delay Gupta report amid opposition protest
PRETORIA (Reuters) – South African President Jacob Zuma on Wednesday dropped his court bid to delay the release of a report over alleged influence peddling in government as thousands marched in the capital Pretoria against the president.
British banker acted rationally, called mother, after HK murders: prosecution
HONG KONG (Reuters) – British investment banker Rurik Jutting acted rationally before and after he killed two Indonesian women in his luxury Hong Kong apartment and had even telephoned his mother after killing the second woman, the prosecution said on …
Najib asks West to stop ‘lecturing’ as Malaysia embraces China
BEIJING (Reuters) – Malaysian premier Najib Razak said that former colonial powers should not lecture nations they once exploited on their internal affairs, a Chinese newspaper reported on Wednesday, in a veiled attack on the West as he looks to streng…
Boat sinks off Indonesia’s Batam, killing 17: disaster agency
JAKARTA (Reuters) – A speedboat carrying 93 Indonesian migrant workers from Malaysia sank off Batam Island on Wednesday, killing 17 of them, Indonesia’s national disaster agency said.
His war on drugs well underway, Philippines’ Duterte now tackles labor reform
MANILA (Reuters) – In four years, Ivan Rey Tan worked with seven Philippine businesses. From a doughnut shop to a baby products store, the firms only hired workers on short-term contracts to rein in costs, and none of his jobs lasted longer than five m…
Vietnam PM orders probe after karaoke blaze kills 13
HANOI (Reuters) – A fire that broke out at a karaoke lounge in Vietnam’s capital killed at least 13 people, the government said on Wednesday, in a rare accident of its kind for which the prime minister demanded an investigation and punishment for safet…
Indonesian students, activists lambast minister’s doorless dorms proposal
JAKARTA (Reuters) – Indonesian students and activists said on Wednesday that a minister’s suggestion to remove doors at college dormitories to prevent sexual promiscuity would infringe privacy and compromise security.
South Korea names new PM, finance minister amid scandal, angering opposition
SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea’s presidential office on Wednesday named a new prime minister and finance minister, the highest-level shake-up since President Park Geun-hye’s administration was rocked by a scandal involving a friend accused of meddling i…
Venezuela opposition scraps Maduro trial but presses demands
CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuela freed four activists and the opposition postponed a symbolic trial in congress of President Nicolas Maduro on Tuesday even as it warned it would quit Vatican-backed talks in a matter of days if tough conditions were not me…
Pope says he believes ban on female priests is forever
ABOARD THE PAPAL PLANE (Reuters) – Pope Francis said on Tuesday he believes the Roman Catholic Church’s ban on women becoming priests is forever and will never be changed, in some of his most definitive remarks on the issue.
