New Zealand announces final contender for flag vote
WELLINGTON (Reuters) – It’s official. A new flag, featuring a fern on a blue and back background, will face off against New Zealand’s current flag next March.
EU border agency could be deployed in non-member states: Asselborn
BERLIN (Reuters) – Luxembourg’s foreign minister said on Tuesday that the European Union’s border agency could be deployed in non-member states like Serbia and Macedonia while EU members with no external borders should provide more help to those with s…
Myanmar’s high opium output a huge test for Suu Kyi government: U.N.
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Opium production in Myanmar has stabilized for a third year, the United Nations said on Tuesday, but remained a daunting challenge for the untested government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi that takes power in February.
Philippine Maoist guerillas declare ceasefire for Christmas holidays
MANILA (Reuters) – Philippine Maoist-led rebels on Tuesday declared a 12-day ceasefire to mark Christmas, ordering guerrilla units to halt offensive operations against military targets and businesses from construction and mines to plantations.
Delhi chief minister says office raided, calls Modi a psychopath
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said his office was raided by federal investigators on Tuesday on the orders of Narendra Modi, in the latest clash between the feisty local politician and India’s prime minister.
South Sudanese commanders use child soldiers as ‘cannon fodder’
NAIROBI (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – More than a dozen senior commanders and officials who children say recruited them as soldiers in South Sudan should be investigated, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Tuesday.
Mexico confirms burnt remains are missing Australian surfers
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – A Mexican official on Monday identified charred bodies found in a camper van as two Australian surfers missing since last month in a state infamous for narcotics gangs.
TAM Airlines Madrid-Sao Paulo flight diverted on bomb threat
RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) – A flight operated by Brazilian flag carrier TAM Airlines was forced to return to Madrid late Monday after a bomb threat, the company said in a statement.
U.S. seeks solution to Cuban migrant crisis but will not change law
HAVANA (Reuters) – The United States has encouraged Central American governments to solve a humanitarian crisis in which thousands of Cubans are stranded in Costa Rica on their journey to the U.S. border, the top U.S. diplomat in Havana said on Monday….
Targeted prosecutions needed to end modern-day slavery scourge
LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – The might of the law is the best way to end modern day slavery, by bringing strategic cases to court that can change company practice or government policy, experts seeking to stamp out the problem in corporate supp…
