Palmyra’s ancient ruins unharmed for now: Syria antiquities chief
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Syria’s antiquities chief said on Tuesday the historic city of Palmyra had been unharmed since ultra-radical Islamic State insurgents seized it from state control last week.
Bombing exposes Saudi failure to curb sectarian strains
DUBAI (Reuters) – A suicide bombing in Saudi Arabia as it presses on with its war against Shi’ite fighters in Yemen has exposed the Sunni kingdom’s failure to curb sectarianism at home and prompted fears that such tensions can only get worse.
Egypt opens Rafah to let stranded Palestinians return to Gaza
GAZA (Reuters) – Egyptian authorities opened the Rafah crossing on Tuesday, for the first time in nearly 80 days, to allow stranded Palestinians to return to the Gaza Strip, witnesses and officials said.
Teenager in Austrian ‘Playstation’ terrorism case gets two years
VIENNA (Reuters) – A 14-year-old boy from Austria who downloaded bomb-making plans onto his Playstation games console was sentenced to a two-year jail term on Tuesday after pleading guilty to terrorism charges, a court spokeswoman said.
Erdogan’s ambition heralds turbulence after Turks vote
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkey’s general election looks likely to push Tayyip Erdogan’s dream of an all-powerful presidency further from his reach, and usher in a period of turbulence as its most divisive modern leader jockeys to maintain his dominance.
Libya’s parliament halts session as car burns outside
BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) – Libya’s elected parliament halted a session attended by Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni on Tuesday after protesters set fire to a car outside its base in the eastern city of Tobruk, lawmakers said.
Fighting hits planting near South Sudan’s Leer town, ICRC resumes aid
LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Fighting in and around South Sudan’s Leer town has disrupted the hunger-hit region’s crucial planting season, and residents returning to the town urgently need food, water and medical help, aid workers said on Tues…
U.N. agency urges truce in Syria fighting during harvesting
ROME (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – A U.N. agency appealed on Tuesday for a pause in the fighting raging across Syria so that farmers can harvest their crops in a country wracked by hunger and displacement.
Japan coalition wants to end most Fukushima evacuations by 2017: draft
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s ruling coalition will recommend lifting evacuation orders for most people forced from their homes by the Fukushima nuclear disaster within two years in a bid to speed up reconstruction, a draft proposal shows.
Nepal moves to protect children from traffickers after quake
KATHMANDU (Reuters) – Nepal banned children from traveling without parents or approved guardians on Tuesday in an unprecedented move to deter human traffickers who authorities fear are targeting vulnerable families after last month’s devastating earthq…
