Syria’s al Qaeda attacks besieged Shi’ite villages
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Syria’s al Qaeda-affiliated Nusra Front and other Sunni Muslim militants fought during the night to capture two Shi’ite villages in the country’s north but were repelled, activists on both sides of the war and a monitoring group said…
London imam Abu Hamza to be sentenced for U.S. terrorism conviction
NEW YORK (Reuters) – For years, the radical imam Abu Hamza al-Masri delivered incendiary sermons at a London mosque, using words that U.S. and UK authorities say helped inspire a generation of militants, including British would-be shoe bomber Richard R…
China punishes 17 officials after Xinjiang attack
BEIJING (Reuters) – China punished 17 officials in Xinjiang for security lapses surrounding deadly explosions and riots in September, state media said, as the Communist Party boss in the western region warned the fight against “terrorism” had entered a…
Momentum builds in Australia to iron out voting quirks, end gridlock
SYDNEY (Reuters) – Momentum is building in Australia for electoral change that could see tiny single issue parties blamed for U.S.-style gridlock in the upper house senate squeezed out, clearing the way for budget reforms as the economy slows.
China bans private drivers in taxi app clampdown
SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China’s transport ministry has banned taxi hailing apps such as Uber Technologies Inc and local rivals Kuaidi Dache and Didi Dache from using cars and drivers without taxi licenses in a bid to regulate the rapidly growing sector.
U.N. Security Council backs plan to defeat Rwandan rebels in Congo
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – The United Nations Security Council on Thursday backed plans by Democratic Republic of the Congo and U.N. peacekeepers to begin a military campaign to “neutralize” a Rwandan rebel group in the country’s rugged eastern provinc…
Boko Haram kills dozens in fresh raids in Nigerian town
BAUCHI, Nigeria (Reuters) – Boko Haram militants have killed dozens of people and burned down homes in the northeast Nigerian town of Baga in the past two days, in a second killing spree since seizing control there at the weekend, witnesses said on Thu…
Armed French gendarmes swoop on villages in manhunt for newspaper attackers
CORCY, France (Reuters) – Armed and masked anti-terrorism police swooped on woodland villages northeast of Paris on Thursday in a manhunt for two brothers suspected of being the Islamist gunmen who killed 12 people at a French satirical weekly.
Sri Lanka on edge as voting ends in tight presidential election
COLOMBO (Reuters) – A night of suspense lay ahead for Sri Lanka as voting ended in a presidential election that could hand Mahinda Rajapaksa a third term or bring to power a rival who has vowed to root out corruption and political decay.
Ethnic cleansing in Central African Republic, no genocide: U.N. inquiry
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – Christian militia in Central African Republic have carried out ethnic cleansing of the Muslim population during the country’s ongoing civil war, but there is no proof there was genocidal intent, a United Nations commission of…
