After labeling, EU think-tank proposes banking steps on Israel
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – The EU agreed this week to push ahead with introduction of labels that specifically identify Israeli goods made in settlements in the occupied West Bank, a policy that has angered Israel; but now an influential European think-tank…
After 25 years together, study shows two Germanys still wide apart
BERLIN (Reuters) – From the amount they earn to their religious convictions and cars they drive, gaping differences between Germans in the former Communist East and the West persist after almost 25 years of reunification, a study published on Wednesday…
Burundi opposition figure calls for unity government to avert new conflict
BUJUMBURA (Reuters) – Burundi’s leading opposition politician called on President Pierre Nkurunziza to hold talks with rivals and form a national unity government after this week’s election, saying it could help avert a new conflict in the poor African…
China returns dissident artist Ai Weiwei’s passport after four years
BEIJING (Reuters) – Chinese dissident artist and free speech advocate Ai Weiwei said that authorities in Beijing returned his passport on Wednesday, more than four years after it was confiscated following his 81-day secret detention.
Zimbabwe farmers fear winter of hunger after poor tobacco crop
HARARE (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Farmer Kenny Mabvumbe looked upset as he returned virtually empty-handed from the tobacco auction floors in the Zimbabwean capital of Harare.
Italian police raids mafia gambling empire, seize assets worth 2 billion euros
ROME (Reuters) – Italian police said on Wednesday they had seized assets worth 2 billion euros ($2.2 billion) and issued 41 arrest warrants in raids on gambling companies in Italy and abroad run by the ‘Ndrangheta mafia organization.
India, Japan, U.S. plan naval exercises in tightening of ties in Indian Ocean
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Japan is set to take part in joint naval exercises with India and the United States in the Indian Ocean in October, military and diplomatic sources said, a drill that so riled China eight years ago that Delhi has not since hosted …
Saudi plane arrives in Yemen’s Aden airport: official
ADEN (Reuters) – A Saudi military plane touched down at Aden International Airport in southern Yemen on Wednesday, an airport official said, first arrival of a flight in almost four months at the war-ravaged port city.
Israeli forces kill Palestinian in West Bank arrest raid: witness
RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) – Israeli security forces on an arrest raid in the occupied West Bank shot and killed a Palestinian on Wednesday when clashes broke out with residents, Palestinian sources said.
Pakistan Supreme Court to hear Christian woman’s blasphemy case
LAHORE, Pakistan (Reuters) – Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Wednesday temporarily suspended the death sentence of a Christian woman accused of blasphemy, her lawyer said, in a case that hit global headlines after the murder of two politicians who tried to…
