Kazakh lower house votes to keep in place govt of PM Masimov
ASTANA (Reuters) – Kazakhstan’s lower house of parliament voted on Friday to keep in place the government of Prime Minister Karim Masimov after a parliamentary election in which the ruling Nur Otan party retained its overwhelming majority.
Beijing extends leave for new parents as China hopes for more children
BEIJING (Reuters) – Authorities in China’s capital will extend leave from work for new mothers and fathers, state media reported on Friday, in what appeared to be the latest incentive to encourage families to have more children.
Beijing not keen as Panama invites Taiwan, China leaders
BEIJING/TAIPEI (Reuters) – China reacted frostily on Friday after Taiwan ally Panama said it had invited leaders from both China and self-ruled Taiwan to attend the inauguration of the expansion of the Panama Canal in late June, in what would be an awk…
Twelve killed in minibus crash in France
PARIS (Reuters) – A minibus traveling from Switzerland to Portugal collided with a lorry in central France on Thursday night, killing its 12 passengers and leaving four others injured, local authorities said in a statement.
Cuba’s journey from rock labor brigades to the Rolling Stones
HAVANA (Reuters) – When Carlos Carnero’s rock band Los Kent plugged in guitars and drums to play Rolling Stones covers on Cuba’s Island of Pines in the 1960s, soldiers stopped the gig at gunpoint in minutes and marched the musicians onto a boat heading…
Thailand delays construction start for rail line to China
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Thailand has pushed back the start date for construction of a multi-billion dollar rail line to link Bangkok to southwest China after a disagreement over the cost of the project, the Thai transport minister said on Friday.
North Korea threatens South’s Blue House as tensions persist
SEOUL (Reuters) – North and South Korea, locked for weeks in exchanges of angry rhetoric and heightened military readiness, traded more threats on Friday, with Pyongyang saying its military had trained to attack Seoul’s presidential Blue House.
China probes former Moutai liquor exec for graft: watchdog
SHANGHAI (Reuters) – A former senior executive at Chinese liquor giant Kweichow Moutai Co Ltd is being investigated for suspected corruption, the ruling Communist Party’s disciplinary watchdog said on Friday.
Philippines releases seized North Korean ship after U.N. lifts embargo
MANILA (Reuters) – The Philippines has released a North Korean freighter it seized nearly a month ago under tough new U.N. sanctions, after no contraband was found onboard and the ship was cleared by the United Nations, officials said on Friday.
Karadzic guilty of Bosnia genocide, jailed for 40 years
THE HAGUE (Reuters) – Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic was convicted by U.N. judges of genocide for the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, the worst war crime in Europe since World War Two, and sentenced to 40 years in prison.
