Testing Beijing, Japan eyes growing role in South China Sea security
TOKYO (Reuters) – Seventy years after its imperial forces were kicked out of the South China Sea, Japan is quietly moving back into the region, forging security ties with the Philippines and Vietnam as both Southeast Asian nations try to cope with Chin…
UK shoppers would switch brands, pay more to avoid use of slaves: poll
LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – The majority of shoppers in the United Kingdom would switch brands or pay higher prices to avoid the use of slave labor in the products they buy, a rights group poll showed on Wednesday.
Italy court upholds Berlusconi acquittal in prostitution case
ROME (Reuters) – Italy’s highest court on Tuesday confirmed an acquittal for former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi on charges of abuse of office and paying for sex with a minor, giving him a boost as he is trying to hold onto his role as a conservati…
Islamic State video shows killing of teen accused as Israeli spy
BEIRUT (Reuters) – A video posted online by Islamic State militants on Tuesday showed a boy fatally shooting Muhammad Musallam, an Israeli Arab accused by the group of having signed up as a jihadi to spy for Israel’s intelligence service.
Virgin’s Branson joins clemency calls for Indonesia death row inmates
SYDNEY (Reuters) – British businessman Richard Branson has joined calls for clemency for convicted foreigners on death row in Indonesia, as an Indonesian minister warned of a renewed influx of asylum seekers into Australia if it continues to push the i…
Iraqi troops, militia retake strategic town north of Tikrit from Islamic State
AL-ALAM, Iraq (Reuters) – Iraqi troops and militias drove Islamic State insurgents out of the town of al-Alam on Tuesday, clearing a final hurdle before a planned assault on Saddam Hussein’s home city of Tikrit in their biggest offensive yet against th…
New Zealand spies on China, other Asian nations: Snowden papers
WELLINGTON (Reuters) – Electronic surveillance by New Zealand’s government extends from China, its biggest trading partner, to Antarctica and is shared with the United States and other international allies, according to documents released on Wednesday….
Qatar says to begin rebuilding 1,000 homes in Gaza
GAZA (Reuters) – A Qatari official visiting a Gaza neighborhood heavily bombed in last summer’s war with Israel said on Tuesday the Gulf Arab state had begun a project to rebuild 1,000 homes as part of a $1 billion aid pledge.
Peru eyes backing bill to resume shooting down drug planes
LIMA (Reuters) – The government of President Ollanta Humala said on Tuesday it might back a bill that would lift a 14-year-old ban on shooting down aircraft suspected of carrying drugs, even though the U.S. government opposes the practice.
Netanyahu says sees ‘real danger’ of losing re-election bid
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday he saw “a real danger” he might lose next week’s closely contested election and asserted that there was a worldwide effort to ensure such an outcome.
