Iceland evacuates area north of rumbling volcano
STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Iceland’s civil protection agency has decided to evacuate an area north of the country’s Bardarbunga volcano, saying it could not rule out an eruption.
Kurdish ministers rejoin Iraqi government: foreign minister
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Kurdish ministers who suspended their participation in the government of outgoing Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki have rejoined the administration, Iraq’s outgoing foreign minister said on Wednesday.
Ukraine maternity ward nurtures new life as the shells fall
DONETSK Ukraine (Reuters) – In a Ukrainian city stalked by death, Tatyana Makarchuk, the director of Donetsk Maternity Hospital No. 3, is making sure that new life can survive.
China seeks passengers’ ID for buying bus tickets in restive Xinjiang
BEIJING (Reuters) – China will require identification from passengers buying long-distance bus tickets in far-western Xinjiang, state media said on Wednesday, as police seek to monitor travel in a region beset by violence.
U.S. suspects in Bali suitcase murder on suicide watch – police
DENPASAR Indonesia (Reuters) – A pregnant U.S. teenager and her boyfriend were on suicide watch on the Indonesian resort island of Bali on Wednesday, police said, after being held as suspects in the murder of the woman’s mother whose battered body was …
Ukraine rebel movement faces uncertain future
DONETSK Ukraine (Reuters) – The resignations were abrupt and unexpected, two quick-fire blows to a separatist movement already suffering reversals on the battle field of eastern Ukraine.
China rejects Manila protest on ships, complains of detentions
BEIJING (Reuters) – China rejected Philippine complaints on Wednesday about Chinese survey vessels operating in a gas-rich area of Manila’s exclusive economic zone, and has lodged a separate complaint about the detention of Chinese workers, as tensions…
Chinese paper calls for retaliation over Australia tycoon attack
BEIJING/SYDNEY (Reuters) – An influential Chinese newspaper called for retaliation against Australia on Wednesday after Australian mining mogul and politician Clive Palmer described China’s government as “bastards” who shoot their own people.
Afghan government bans NYT reporter from leaving country
KABUL (Reuters) – The Afghan attorney general’s office has barred a New York Times reporter from leaving the country after the paper ran a story about ministry and palace officials discussing plans to form an interim government if an election deadlock …
Chinese rail official gets death sentence in corruption case
BEIJING (Reuters) – A Beijing court on Wednesday sentenced a former railway official to death for corruption, but promised a reprieve after two years of good behavior, state media reported, in the latest graft case to hit China’s sprawling rail network…