France mobilizes 10,000 troops at home after Paris shootings
PARIS (Reuters) – France will deploy 10,000 soldiers on home soil by Tuesday and post almost 5,000 extra police officers to protect Jewish sites after the killing of 17 people by Islamist militants in Paris last week, officials said.
Fidel Castro writes Maradona to quell death rumors: Venezuela TV
CARACAS (Reuters) – Fidel Castro has sent a letter to his friend and Argentine soccer great Diego Maradona, a Venezuelan-based TV network said on Monday, adding that the missive quashed rumors that the former Cuban leader might have died.
Israel shuts Muslim groups over Jerusalem shrine tensions
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israel shut down three local Islamist groups on Monday, accusing them of stoking tensions at a contested shrine in occupied East Jerusalem that has seen increased visits by Jews.
Nigeria’s military says 150 killed in Boko Haram clashes in Baga
ABUJA (Reuters) – Nigeria’s military said on Monday that at least 150 people had been killed in clashes with Islamists in the northeastern town of Baga, giving a rare official death toll a few weeks before presidential elections in which security is a …
Kerry holds security talks in Pakistan after school massacre
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry held talks in Pakistan on Monday during a visit intended to press the government to do more to crack down on militant groups after last month’s massacre of 134 children by Taliban gunmen.
Greek anti-bailout party Syriza holds 4.5 point lead before vote: poll
ATHENS (Reuters) – Greece’s anti-bailout Syriza party held a steady lead over Prime Minister Antonis Samaras’ conservative party ahead of a Jan. 25 snap election, a poll showed on Monday.
Divers retrieve AirAsia ‘black box’, explosion theory questioned
PANGKALAN BUN, Indonesia/JAKARTA (Reuters) – Indonesian navy divers retrieved the black box flight data recorder from the wreck of an AirAsia passenger jet on Monday, a major step towards unraveling the cause of the crash that killed all 162 people on …
Pope heads to Sri Lanka at rare moment of island harmony
COLOMBO (Reuters) – Pope Francis arrives in Sri Lanka on Tuesday for a visit expected to add to a new harmonious atmosphere in the Buddhist-majority nation that last week elected a government promising increased respect for long-suffering religious min…
Merkel says Islam ‘belongs to Germany’ ahead of Dresden rally
BERLIN (Reuters) – German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Monday Islam “belongs to Germany”, in a clear repudiation of anti-immigration protesters gathering in Dresden and other cities.
Egyptian activist once fired up by Arab Spring abandons politics ahead of polls
ZAGAZIG, Egypt (Reuters) – When protests erupted in Cairo in 2011, liberal activist Hassan El-Erian quickly mobilized demonstrations in his hometown of Zagazig, risking arrest, or worse, to push for democracy. 
