Erdogan’s Ottoman language drive faces backlash in Turkey
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – President Tayyip Erdogan stirred fierce criticism on Tuesday with plans to make lessons in Ottoman Turkish mandatory in high schools, prompting one opposition politician to declare that an army could not force his daughter to learn…
Bahrain activist sentenced to additional jail terms
MANAMA (Reuters) – A Bahraini court sentenced pro-democracy activist Zainab al-Khawaja to 16 months in jail on Tuesday for insulting a government employee and damaging public property, her lawyer said.
How Yemen’s Houthis control Sanaa and alarm the West
SANAA (Reuters) – It was Waddah al-Hitari’s beard that killed him. Militiamen on the streets of Yemen’s capital shot him dead one Friday because he looked like a terrorist, colleagues of the young doctor said.
Bosnian leadership takes shape, pledging reform
SARAJEVO (Reuters) – A political bloc in Bosnia edged towards a new national government on Tuesday committed to a raft of reforms backed by the European Union in an effort to unblock the country’s stalled bid to join the bloc.
Iran says has no information on alleged purchase of nuclear equipment
ANKARA (Reuters) – Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation said on Tuesday it had no information about the illicit procurement of equipment for the Arak research reactor as alleged in a report by a U.N. panel of experts and based on a briefing by a member co…
Zimbabwe’s Mugabe fires deputy, seven ministers
HARARE (Reuters) – Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe has fired his deputy, Joice Mujuru, and seven government ministers, his cabinet secretary said on Tuesday, in the latest twist in a power struggle over the choice of his successor.
Strict new Japan secrets law to take effect amid protests
TOKYO (Reuters) – Waving banners and beating drums, hundreds of Japanese took to the streets of Tokyo to protest a strict new state-secrets law taking effect on Wednesday that critics charge will help conceal government misdeeds and limit press freedom…
Rattled by wartime rockets, Israel plans alternate airport
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – An airport planned for Israel’s southern desert is being billed as a wartime alternative to Tel Aviv, which was briefly shunned by most foreign carriers in July because of Palestinian rocket fire from Gaza.
Kosovo lawmakers endorse former exile to lead coalition of rivals
PRISTINA (Reuters) – Lawmakers in Kosovo endorsed former minister-in-exile Isa Mustafa as prime minister on Tuesday, tasking him with consolidating the young Balkan nation’s independence and attracting foreign investors.
Apathy biggest bar to ending child slavery: Nobel prize winner
OSLO (Reuters) – Apathy is the biggest obstacle to eliminating forced child labor and the world needs more secular education to reduce intolerance, Nobel Peace Prize winner Kailash Satyarthi said on Tuesday.
