Brazil Senate passes decree to help utilities ahead of auction
BRASILIA (Reuters) – The Brazilian Senate on Tuesday approved a presidential decree that helps hydroelectric producers hit by record droughts, in a move that could raise investors’ appetite for power plants up for auction on Wednesday.
China fines five phony Disney hotels: Xinhua
SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China has fined five knock-off Disney hotels for infringing on the iconic U.S. entertainment company’s trademarks, state-run Xinhua news agency said on Wednesday in the run-up to the opening of a Walt Disney Co theme park in Shangh…
Bangladesh leader Hasina’s gains from shock hangings seen short-lived
DHAKA (Reuters) – The execution of two Bangladeshi opposition leaders for war crimes appears to have cowed rivals of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, but critics said her success comes at the cost of free discourse and the calm is likely to be short-lived…
Reports of civilian casualties dim chances of U.S.-Russia alliance in Syria
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Reports of heavy civilian casualties from Russia’s bombing campaign in Syria are one key reason why Washington is unlikely to coordinate airstrikes with Moscow against Islamic State, U.S. officials told Reuters, even as President Barack Obama left the door ajar on Tuesday to military cooperation with the Kremlin.
Militants fight their way into army base in Indian Kashmir, officer says
SRINAGAR, India (Reuters) – Three militants attacked an Indian army base in the disputed Kashmir region on Wednesday and holed up in the officers mess as a gunbattle raged, a senior army officer said.
Hurricane Sandra forms off Mexico’s Pacific coast, seen strengthening
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Hurricane Sandra formed off Mexico’s Pacific coast on Tuesday, with the storm expected to strengthen as it heads toward the country’s northwest coast, the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.
Thousands of Cubans stuck after Nicaragua declines to open border
SAN SALVADOR (Reuters) – Thousands of Cubans remain stuck on the Costa Rican side of the border with Nicaragua after Managua refused at a regional summit on Tuesday to open its doors to a wave of migrants heading for the United States.
Obama meets with national security advisers on Islamic State threat: White House
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama met with his National Security Council on Tuesday to discuss the response to recent attacks by Islamic State militants, and told his team to “continue to intensify ongoing efforts” against the group, the Wh…
Honduras judge rules five Syrians to face charges of falsifying documents
TEGUCIGALPA (Reuters) – A judge in Honduras on Tuesday ordered that five Syrians allegedly caught traveling with fake Greek documents as they tried to head north to the United States must remain behind bars as they await trial to face charges of falsif…
Report says combination of errors led to U.S. bombing of MSF hospital: NYT
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A U.S. air strike that destroyed a hospital run by Medecins Sans Frontieres in the northern Afghan city of Kunduz last month resulted from “human errors, failures in procedure and technical malfunctions,” the New York Times repor…
